What nobody could have imagined
by NicoleCollard
Summary: A collection of missing scenes starring Effie Trinket and Haymitch Abernathy all along the Hunger Games story, just the way I imagine they happened. Every chapter will be a never seen before moment between them.
1. Chapter 1: Before the 74th Reaping

_Hi there! This is my first Hunger Games and Hayffie fic ever (I don't own any of the characters, the original story...). Certain scene in Mockingjay Part 2 took me aback, so I decided to explore this new-found relationship. I think this is going to be a collection of one-shots: every chapter will show some missing moment between Effie and Haymitch along the Hunger Games plot (mostly movie-verse) just the way I imagine them._

 _I have to say that English isn't my first language, so please excuse any mistakes you come across. I'll be very grateful if you could tell me in order to improve my writing._

 _Enjoy and review!_

 **Chapter 1: Before the 74º Reaping**

When Effie knocked on Haymitch's door before the 74º Reaping, she broke one of her golden and fuchsia fingernails due to the tension. She couldn't deny she was quite irritated. After all, she had been working alongside the District Twelve victor for ten years and the experience was far from having been pleasant. Effie tutted and prepared herself to wait for, at least, ten minutes, as always. But her patience had been wearing thin along all those years: she was about to turn thirty-one and considered she deserved some respect, so she pushed the door without second thought and got into Haymitch's house.

The man was bent down over the kitchen table with both his hands holding his head as if it were going to spin around at any moment. He exhaled a weary sigh when he heard Effie's heels punishing the wooden floor and made an immense effort to raise his eyes from the table in an attempt to show some dignity. Haymitch saw the gaudy huge pink rose she was wearing in the middle of her wig and tried not to burst into laughter. Effie pursed her lips and tutted again: twice in so very little time.

"Haymitch Abernathy, you're hopeless", she reprimanded shaking her head. A strong smell of alcohol hit her nose and she had to wrinkle it.

"Sorry for my lack of enthusiasm about all this stuff, sweetheart", he replied with a hoarse voice. His words came out of his mouth as if his tongue were made of paperboard. "I can't help it".

"We don't have time for this, so get up and get ready", Effie urged. She couldn't believe how little empathy he showed towards her: she was there to do her job in the best possible way. She still had to prove herself as an escort in front of people from the Capitol in order to do her duty and gain some popularity. It was all about popularity in her everyday world. Maybe Haymitch could become isolated or drink himself to death, but she wasn't allowed to do so, not with every Capitol eye fixed on the unsuccessful escorts like her.

The victor started to stand up with noticeable difficulties. He staggered a little and Effie hurried towards the man to catch him by the arm, which prevented Haymitch from falling backwards. This dragged him forward and he ended up relying on poor Effie.

"You... smell nice", Haymitch said with a silly smile across his face.

"That's so... so inappropriate", she blushed a little because of the unexpected comment -she thanked her white make-up internally for masking her face-. Suddenly she felt a rush of heat in her cheeks, but she recovered quickly enough to keep the situation under control. "Drink some coffee and focus. You will be needed in an hour!".

Then she helped him to become steady and turned around to go upstairs, where Haymitch stored lots of brand new clothes sent by the Capitol every now and then. With her heart still pounding in annoyance -or so she wanted to think-, she chose a fine shirt, a linen waistcoat and some matching pants which still remained untouched. Effie was used to Haymitch's unsuitable remarks by then; however, he still had the ability to psych her out on occasion. It made it very difficult to remain professional.

When she showed up again carrying the folded clothes in her arms, Haymitch was back on the table, snoring without any complex. Effie's eyes and mouth opened in pure disbelief and she felt rage spreading across her whole body.

"Haymitch!", she shouted with a voice an octave higher than usual.

But the man apparently didn't hear anything, so Effie put down the clothes on the table beside him, her hands trembling in scarcely disguised anger. "Take a shower and get dressed", then she sighed and added in a softer tone: "You have to be on the stage in an hour or the peacekeepers will come and get you, you know. I'd rather not see them drag you by the hair, so please, do your bit".

As Haymitch didn't show any signs of hearing, Effie tutted one third time that morning. Definitely, she had tried with all her heart, but that man was impossible. At that point she could no longer remember why she had admired him so much once. With a wave of melancholy invading her chest, Effie walked towards the hall, cast a final look at Haymitch when she was about to close the door and left the house, taking with her the flowery scent and the noisy clicking of her heels.

When he was absolutely certain that Effie wasn't still around, Haymitch raised his head and rested it on his hand. With his eyes fixed on the door, he snorted and made a smirk. In some way, he enjoyed kidding the Capitol doll, though deep down, he felt some kind of affection for her. But most of the time, he just felt indifferent or annoyed: her presence in his life meant he was still a slave of the Capitol and it brought up lots of awful memories from the past. Haymitch tried to drown them in alcohol very hard, but the odd escort kept showing up at his door every year. At least, he had to admit that she was stubborn and determined: no other escort had remained so many years at his side -it's no wonder why they hadn't-, trying to help the starving tributes from District Twelve to win the damn Hunger Games year after year and dealing with their grumpy mentor without even faltering.

Finally, Haymitch got up and headed to the bathroom rubbing his temples.

 _I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. I don't know what the next moment will be, but I'm sure I want to make Hayffie relationship evolve along the chapters to end up writing that final kiss as a real possibility, so keep an eye on this._

 _Thanks for reading!_


	2. Chapter 2: Kids playing with fire

_The next few chapters take place during the 74º Hunger Games and they depict some possible interactions between Effie and Haymitch._

 _Enjoy!_

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 2: Kids playing with fire**

Everybody who was anybody in the Capitol showed up at the scores hall at some point. The room was a gigantic silvery place where important people could hang out, drink, comment about the tributes and watch the Games on the big screens. Most of these people were potential sponsors, as they owned the greatest fortunes in Panem.

Haymitch didn't enjoy watching the Games: he had had enough for two or three lifetimes with his involvement in his teens, so he stayed at the penthouse as much as possible, TV switched off. It was too painful for him to watch those poor kids being ripped open, as he had been once. But, in spite of this, he wasn't able to leave them to their fate, and, as a mentor, he ended up having a glance at the scores, at the screens, and he always tried to find some sponsors for his tributes during the first days. Unfortunately, District Twelve tributes always died in the bloodbath or, in the best-case scenario, in twenty-four hours. There was nothing else Haymitch could do to help them survive and he carried that burden, though hardly anyone realized: everyone preferred to see him as a waste of space, but he was simply broken.

A noisy guffaw made him lost his train of thought. There was a four-member family near his seat: the little boy, dressed in a coppery frock coat, had just unwrapped a brand new plastic sword and was chasing his sister -a little Effie in the making- to attack her. Both their parents burst into laughter as the children started to run around them. Undoubtedly, they were imitating their idols, pretending to be two tributes from the Hunger Games. That must be so common in the Capitol that it was absolutely frightening. Haymitch had to make a serious effort to conceal what he felt at the sight of the game, but he couldn't prevent a sad and wounded look.

Nobody in the lounge cared about his feelings, however, but maybe one person. Effie had climbed to the penthouse right after leaving Peeta and Katniss at the Training Center to look for Haymitch in order to start working on their strategy. As she didn't find him drinking his life away up there, she headed to the scores hall. Once she arrived at the sliding doors, Effie caught a glimpse of natural blonde hair and made her way through the amounts of people, but suddenly, she was fully aware of Haymitch's expression and came to a halt. She didn't remember having seen such a sorrow in the mentor's eyes before. He must be lost in his deepest and darkest thoughts, so Effie decided to give the man a moment before addressing him. She approached the couch slowly, then coughed quite audibly for Haymitch to notice her presence.

"Hi, princess", he greeted Effie coming back to reality.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, fabulous". His answer was pregnant with irony.

Effie rolled her eyes and pursed her lips. She knew Haymitch used to make fun of every tricky situation as a defense, but she was just trying to help. The escort armed herself with patience and she demanded again: "Are you sure? May I do anything for you?"

Haymitch stared at her wearing an indulgent smile. Poor thing. "Can you get me out of this place?"

Effie's face got sad. "Well, I can't at this very moment, Haymitch. We need to start making friends right now: everybody is here this morning. Katniss and Peeta's lives may depend on it when the Games begin, you know that."

"I know. Well, let's do it: the sooner we start, the sooner we finish", the man said as he got up from the couch. "But you know I hate social gathering. I can't put up with so much frivolity together and today I'm not having my better day".

"I wonder what a good day looks like to you", she mocked with a twisted smile as she took him by the arm. Haymitch raised a eyebrow at the teasing but he returned the smile.

"Really, sweetheart? I could show you...", the mentor replied broadening his smirk mischievously.

Effie hit him playfully in the forearm with a frown, shook her head and responded: "Don't be rude, Haymitch. By the way, I'll take the lead this time, but you owe me one".

The man raised both his hands in surrender and walked arm in arm with Effie towards the first splendid group she spotted. The escort had already noticed in past days that Haymitch's attitude was slightly different that year, maybe because of the tributes, maybe because of any other unknown causes, so she decided to involve him in the project of training and helping their tributes one more time. She was determined to succeed, she wasn't going to throw in the towel, she was going to raise Haymitch from the ashes, despite all his bitterness and disdain.

Haymitch observed her as she exposed her points to anybody who was interested in listening. They've been working together for ten years and that was the first time he noticed something like empathy in her. However, he told himself, her display of concern could have been just a strategy to get him on his feet as soon as possible. After all, Effie was an escort from the Capitol: she couldn't possibly understand what being a tribute or a mentor implied; they were worlds apart. Truth be told, she honestly cared for the kids and she always felt genuinely devastated when they lost their tributes every year in the Games, but he was sure that was all it meant to her, a game, a job, an opportunity to get a promotion: that was why Haymitch could never become close to her.

 _-oooooo-_

 _There you are. I know there is still little interaction, but in my humble opinion, it's the natural way for them. Be patient! Thanks for reading. :)_


	3. Chapter 3: Making peace

_Next chapter of the 74th Hunger Games series. It takes place right after Katniss and Peeta's interviews with Caesar Flickerman: Peeta confesses his love for Katniss and she doesn't take it very well, so she attacks him back in the penthouse in front of their prep team._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 3: Making peace**

"Maybe I can deliver you both in one piece tomorrow", Haymitch's showed his bother through sarcasm.

As Portia leaded scared Peeta to his bedroom, Effie pointed Katniss with an admonitory finger and fired: "Manners!". Then Cinna took the girl by the arm and walked her to her room as well.

Effie -arms crossed- and Haymitch -hands on his hips- remained at the living-room, where they could still sense the tension in the air. The escort kept shaking her head while pacing the place. Then she stopped and stared at Haymitch pursing her lips.

"What?", he said with a shrug.

Rolling eyes. "Nothing".

"Oh, c'mon, is this my fault? Is that what you are saying?", Haymitch asked with his eyes wide open.

Effie took a deep breath and then nodded. "Yes, in a way it is!".

"I can't believe this!". The mentor from District Twelve snorted in pure disbelief and turned his back to Effie, then faced her again: "Peeta says he has a crush on Katniss, stuff I don't know anything about, and even though it's her who confronts him afterwards, I find myself guilty of everything. There's something I'm missing here".

Haymitch's face was only a few inches apart from Effie's by then. She could feel his breath on her glowing cheeks.

"You always defend her, no matter whether she's right or not". Besides her being angry at what she just stated, there was a lot of resentment in her tone since she wasn't able to forget his gratuitous comment about her dress back at the TV studio.

"No, I defend her when you think she made a mistake and I don't think so. I've got my own opinions, you know? And I've gone through more Hunger Games than you, sweetheart: never forget that", Haymitch said without taking any steps back. Effie's face was a true portrait of frustration. The man separated a little from her and went on talking: "Whatever, I didn't defend her today. I'm sure I made things very clear".

"What is clear is that you've taken sides for Katniss. You don't think Peeta has a chance, do you?", the woman accused him with her arms still crossed in front of her chest as a defense.

"Of course I have faith in Peeta. How can you say that? I'm doing my best with them both, I'm teaching them everything I know about the arena. But Katniss has the support of the audience, despite her manners. She scored an eleven and volunteered for her sister, for God's sake. She's protective and has a survival instinct as well, which makes her a powerful contender. I'm not saying Peeta can't win, of course he can, but Katniss reminds me of myself when I got thrown into the arena. I can't help it".

Haymitch finished with another shrug.

"That isn't fair for Peeta", Effie said, still reluctant to give in. "You should try to appreciate them equally".

"They aren't my children, Effie, nor yours. If you pressed me, I would say I appreciate Peeta the more because he's a lovely young man. I don't appreciate Katniss for being like me, I hate myself".

"Haymitch-", the Capitol escort tried to interrupt, but he didn't allow her.

"It's true, I live with it".

A tense silence filled the living-room as both Effie and Haymitch looked down at their feet. Effie was quite lost for words. Bringing up the man's emotional burdens wasn't her point, so she started to feel ashamed and guilty. Before she could say anything to ease the tension, Haymitch spoke:

"I suppose I see you tomorrow. The big, big day and stuff, isn't it? Well, goodnight, Effie".

"Goodnight", she replied in a low voice.

Then both of them headed to their bedrooms without waiting for Cinna and Portia to say goodbye. They would be perfectly capable of finding their way out of the penthouse and into the streets.

Haymitch arrived at his room and poured himself a glass of bourbon. He had stayed sober for two whole days but that argument was enough for him. As far as he knew, he was treating both tributes in the same way. Perhaps he gave some preference to Katniss, but it was inevitable due to all the reasons he'd given to Effie. Besides she had that mockingjay pin in her power. Maysilee's mockingjay pin. He would have recognized it anywhere. Haymitch had discovered it among Katniss' belongings the day before and had told Cinna right away about it, because he wanted his female tribute to keep the pin at the arena whatever the cost. How the mockingjay had ended up in the girl's hands was a mystery, but it couldn't be just a coincidence, Haymitch refused to believe that: Katniss owning the mockingjay ought to mean something, he needed that little and unexpected ray of hope to still hold on to life.

With all those thoughts crossing his mind, Haymitch sat on his king-size bed and took a long sip of bourbon to calm down. Perhaps he had been too harsh with Effie, after all. The escort was just trying to make him realize how lost Peeta might feel without some support. Both of them were too nervous these days because they sensed something different in the air that year: maybe Peeta or Katniss had a chance to win and set a precedent, to change something... Haymitch shook his head to shoo these ideas away since his mind had started to go down a very dangerous path again. He told himself not to get too excited. Dreaming was allowed, of course, but waking up from a beautiful but fragile dream to a real nightmare once again could be the ultimate blow to him, so he decided to focus on satisfying Effie as she was the only constant in his life, and he knew he had upset her, so the man promised himself he would say sorry to the colorful escort the next morning.

For her part, Effie got into her bedroom, closed the door and leaned against it with her eyes closed. She needed to regain some inner peace as well, but she didn't rely on alcohol to get it, of course, she was far classier than that. To be honest, deep inside she was quite jealous of Haymitch for allowing himself to drink like a fish: she also wanted to forget sometimes.

Effie sighed and approached the mahogany desk where she had scattered all her schedules, documents, arrangements and similar stuff. Working had always been her way of finding refuge, but as soon as she started leafing through all those official papers she realized she wasn't going to be able to concentrate that night, on the eve of the Hunger Games. A sudden pang of sadness hit her chest. _Oh, poor kids_ , she thought with her mind fixed on Katniss and Peeta, the first tributes from District Twelve who had showed some guts. And besides that, Peeta had confessed his love for Katniss and now they were mad at each other. What a tragedy! The escort believed every single word of it without the slightest doubt, of course. Peeta was so honest, tender and polite... Maybe that was precisely why Haymitch kind of rejected the boy: they had nothing to do with each other, they were as different as night and day.

Haymitch.

That man would end up driving her crazy, she knew. Nobody could remain indifferent to Haymitch: either you hated him or you loved him, and Effie was very, very clear about that she couldn't stand the victor, though sometimes she felt quite close to him or even sorry, because she knew he led an unhealthy and bitter life lacking in illusions. A shiver ran down her spine and she decided to stop thinking about sad stuff: the situation would become worrying enough the next morning, when she would have to fix things between her tributes and to convince them to make peace before going into the arena.

As she always did when she was going through too much stress, the woman took off her heels, sat down on top of her bed, crossed her legs despite the tube skirt she was wearing and started to breathe slowly with her eyes closed. Effie lost count of the time she had been in that position -maybe half an hour or more- when a light knock on the door made her open her eyes. She stood up right away just in time to show some dignity when Haymitch himself opened her door and poked his head round it.

"Come, sweetheart. There's something I want to show you".

She had no time to protest, as Haymitch had already disappeared from the doorjamb when she started to open her mouth. Effie put on her heels back in a rush and left her bedroom after the mentor. What in the name of God did he want now? It wasn't the first time he showed up at her bedroom in the middle of the night, of course. After ten years of working together, they'd been through lots of things, mostly losing tributes, but also Haymitch's drunkenness and hangovers. However -Effie thought while walking down the corridor- the man didn't look drunk that night. She went downstairs wondering where he would have gone when she spotted him waiting for her at the bottom of the staircase, shushing with his index finger across his mouth. She could hear some voices in the air, muffled by the distance. When Effie reached Haymitch, he led her to the huge column which held up the stairs and they both hid behind it. Then the mentor pointed towards the large window and Effie poked her head to discover two sitting silhouettes against the Capitol streetlights.

Katniss and Peeta were talking peacefully. There were no signs of bickering or annoyance between them. Both teenagers had their nightwear on, so it was clear they couldn't sleep. Effie was tempted to go out from their hiding place to send them to bed, but it looked like Haymitch had read her mind because he hold her back just in case. Yes, for the first time, Effie had to agree with the man: maybe Katniss and Peeta needed to be alone to relax, and if that made them happy, then Effie was happy as well. They were so cute together...

The Capitol escort got carried away by her feelings for a second and she rested her head on Haymitch's shoulder. He corresponded by wrapping his arm around hers. That was comforting somehow, so they stood like there for a while, sharing that moment, making time to stand still for them and for Katniss and Peeta as well. A few minutes later, Effie looked up at Haymitch and they locked eyes, maybe for a little longer than what would have been normal. Then the mentor nodded and they left their hideout and went upstairs together without a word. It wasn't until they were about to part ways that Effie let out:

"Mmmm, I'm sorry for what I said before. I'm quite nervous these days and I think I took it out on you."

"You use to take everything out on me."

"Haymitch, I'm trying-".

"I know, sweetheart, I was just kidding. I accept your apologies, but I didn't treat you well either and I'm sorry. Go to bed and rest: tomorrow is going to be a hard day", Haymitch said with a sigh, and Effie was sure about what he was going to do when he locked his door: drinking and drinking. For some reason, that thought made her unhappy and she kept staring at his back as he walked down the corridor. The man stopped suddenly halfway and turned round to look at her, then he said: "By the way, Effie, I still don't like your dress" and disappeared behind his bedroom door.

The escort frowned in disgust and prepared herself for her beauty sleep.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Well, I hope you like it! Please, don't forget to tell me what you think. Thanks!_


	4. Chapter 4: Nobody ever wins the Games

_Here we go with another chapter set in the 74th Hunger Games. I was thinking about writing some drabbles about Effie and Haymitch's reactions to what happened during the Games since I can imagine them suffering while watching Katniss comforting Rue or finding Peeta, but I decided to go straight to the winning scene._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 4: Nobody ever wins the Games**

"Attention, attention, tributes. There's been a slight rule change: the previous revision allowing for two victors from the same district has been... revoked. Only one victor may be crowned. Good luck. And may the odds be ever in your favor."

Haymitch was seated in the scores hall when he heard the news. The big screens were showing Katniss and Peeta's pale faces from every possible angle. Suddenly, the mentor's throat got dry. He heard a muffled scream coming from his left as Effie covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide open. Haymitch reached for her knee and stroked it comfortingly without taking his eyes from the screen. Lots of protests resounded around the huge hall, but he couldn't really hear them.

"Go ahead", they saw Peeta's surrender with their hearts bleeding. "One of us should go home. One of us has to die. They have to have their victor."

"Oh, this is so unfair", Effie said half angry, half devastated as Haymitch kept on caressing her knee. "Poor Peeta".

Then Katniss shouted "No!" and threw her bow. "They don't".

Haymitch's heart began to pound against his chest violently when the girl went on "Why should they?". She was referring to the Capitol highest spheres, to president Snow himself and Haymitch's mind raced from pride to worry in a second.

When Katniss took the nightlocks out of her pocket and handed them to Peeta, Effie leapt, but the mentor remained seated, getting increasingly nervous, nearly biting his nails. Katniss looked so confident that it gave Haymitch goosebumps. She was going to do it, she was going to defy the Capitol, and he knew the terrible consequences of it perfectly: he had experienced them firsthand.

 _Don't do it_ , Katniss, he thought, but deep inside he knew there was no other escape for them: either both alive or both death. It was insane to force them to kill each other at that point.

"What is she doing, Haymitch?", Effie asked sitting down again and clutching his arm.

When both teenagers agreed to eat the nightlocks together, the escort pressed her face against Haymitch's shoulder to hide her sobs, but she was trembling. "I don't want to see this. It's so unfair... so unfair..."

The man was sure his heart would break his chest at any moment. The kids counted to three. Some women screamed dramatically when Peeta caressed Katniss's braid. Unfortunately, it was all lost for them. Everybody in the Capitol and in the districts held their breaths, and when Katniss and Peeta were about to eat the berries... then everybody heard the miraculous voice saying "Stop! Stop!". Effie raised her head from Haymitch's shoulder in awe, traces of tears visibly ruining her make-up. Claudius Templesmith resumed his speech: "Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the winners of the 74th annual Hunger Games".

It had to be a hoax, Haymitch couldn't believe it. He still held his breath for another second, but nothing happened: Katniss and Peeta hugged each other and almost everybody in the scores hall shouted in happiness, including Effie. Haymitch sighed, not sure whether he felt relieved or desperate, and lowered his head to rub his eyes. After a moment, he stood up to go to the penthouse because he needed to think alone, away from all the cheering. But suddenly Effie threw her arms around his shoulders like a purple hurricane and almost made him fall down. A flowery scent wrapped him as she tightened her grip and somehow it worked like a balsam.

"They won, Haymitch! We won!", she kept saying. She was happier than he had ever seen her. He hugged the escort back patting her on the back with a sad smile on his lips. _Nobody ever wins the Games_ , Haymitch thought with a pang of anxiety, but what he really muttered in her ear was: "Yes, we did it. Congratulations".

He had already found out about the riots in District Eleven after Rue's death and Katniss's farewell to her, as he had a good relationship with Chaff, one of the mentors from there, and the man had told him about. What Katniss and Peeta did in the end could be considered an act of rebellion as well, and he doubted they could get away with it forever. Haymitch got very angry at the situation. He didn't want to get paranoiac, but they all could be in great danger for them showing the Capitol up. And, despite everything, poor Effie seemed so glad... Finally, she had her victor, two of them at the same time, actually, and she deserved that moment of joy, but Haymitch was sure Snow would ruin her victory by finding a way of making them pay for it.

When they broke apart, Effie's hands still on his shoulders, Haymitch's face showed concern and the woman noticed it, so she asked becoming serious: "What is it?"

"Nothing. Look for your friends and enjoy. You earned it."

"But, aren't you coming?", Effie asked with surprise. "You deserve it as well, yo have to come!"

Haymitch snorted, but softened his tone. "No, sweetheart, I'm very tired. Too many emotions, you know. I'll be up in the penthouse celebrating in my own way."

"Well...", the escort was quite reluctant to let him go. "I suppose I'll see you in one hour when they bring back Peeta and Katniss from the hospital."

"Yes, of course. We'll toast them. See you later."

And Haymitch left her standing in the middle of the hall. He needed a drink. Alone. Now. Before he could start hitting someone.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Another one gone. We'll see more from Effie and Haymitch from the Victory Tour. Something's already in the air. :)_


	5. Chapter 5: Violence at its worst

_It's time to start with Catching Fire. Here we go with some scenes from the Victory Tour._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 5: Violence at its worst**

Effie had never taken part in a Victory Tour, so she was absolutely excited. When she boarded the train with Cinna and the rest of the prep team, she felt her heart full of joy. It was her moment -Katniss and Peeta's as well, of course-, but she was sure she fully deserved the trip after ten years of working and longing for it. She had never had the opportunity to travel to the rest of the districts in Panem or going to the Victory Ball held in President Snow's palace. However, above everything, she was a professional and tried not to show her feelings too much in front of her colleagues.

She had to admit that there was also a concern dancing in her mind: Katniss's reactions and Haymitch not being the mentor he should be. The girl was pretty calm when they had said their farewells back in District Twelve several months ago, at the end of the Games, but that might have been due to her exhaustion. She hoped Katniss to be open-minded, receptive and adorable along the tour, but Effie knew better: surely her sulkiness would have been increased by the Games. As for Haymitch, the escort feared his alcohol abuse anytime anywhere. High spheres were always watching them because of their jobs, but they had only been two simple escort and mentor until that moment, a circumstance that was going to change since they had become the current winners of the Games. So they could expect even more attention and tracking. Effie would have to convince Haymitch to stay sober as long as possible.

The prep team got off the train in District Twelve, picked up their three victors -two of them were quite cold towards each other and the third one quite drunk, as always- and they returned to the train together. Effie didn't let herself break down due to the hitch: it was her job to cheer up everyone and manage to put them in place. Everything had to be fabulous, even if Katniss didn't take her too seriously or answer her back all the time. Their first confrontation happened during the very first meal on board, actually, when Katniss took offense at Effie telling her and Peeta to enjoy the tour. The girl stood up without finishing her mushrooms and left the car. Then the woman tried to stop her with a high-handed "Young lady" but her effort was useless. Haymitch shook his head and said "Effie..." to calm her down. After a while, Peeta left as well.

Effie thought the trip couldn't get any better when they arrived at District Eleven. Everybody knew Twelve and Eleven were the poorest districts, and as District Twelve inhabitants, they were used to misery, but nobody in the team were ready for what they saw when they got off the train. Peacekeepers everywhere, full working high voltage fences surrounding the place, people starved to death and sadness, loads of sadness and desperation in their eyes.

However, the visit reached its climax when Peeta decided to donate one month of their winnings to the families of the Tributes every year and Katniss finished up with her words in Rue's honor. Effie didn't know where to hide. They should read the cards she wrote! Even Cinna and Haymitch were quite shocked. Then, an old man in the audience raised his hand with his three middle fingers up and whistled. Many others followed his example soon, which made the three adults shiver. Some peacekeepers leaped on the old man while some others took Katniss and Peeta away back inside the building and then... they heard a gunshot and the man fell dead to the ground.

That caused a vehement reaction in Katniss, so Haymitch had to hold her back and took Peeta and the girl up to the attic, where they may talk without anyone listening -Effie supposed- while the escort reprimanded the peacekeepers and the mayor. Never in all her years watching Victory Tours on TV had she witnessed such a violent response from the peacekeepers. She was taken aghast but she didn't show being daunted by them.

Back on board, Katniss and Peeta went to bed very early. Cinna, Effie and Haymitch remained at the restaurant car for a while in silence. The mentor held a glass of scotch in his hand and stared blindly at the window, completely absentminded. He was remembering Katniss's words about Snow. It was clear for the president that something had changed since the last Hunger Games. People in the districts were starting to consider Katniss to be a symbol for the rebellion, that rebellion some brilliant minds had been orchestrating in the shadows from years ago without having the spark which would trigger the uprisings. Then that girl from District Twelve appeared, volunteered for her sister, defied the Capitol in front of everyone and got away with it. She was the symbol the rebellion needed to raise and she had been chosen by the people themselves, she became an icon just the natural way.

Suddenly, Effie's voice got Haymitch out of his shell. She was talking to Cinna, cause she knew the mentor was very far far away from there.

"It's a shame the way they treated our victors in District Eleven. They can't ruin the tour for two winners with such violence. But I put them in their place."

Cinna didn't say anything, but his face showed his concern. Haymitch was aware that Cinna was an important part of the revolution, so obviously he knew the dangers of admonishing a Capitol authority.

"Be careful, sweetheart", Haymitch advised attracting both Effie and Cinna's looks. "You saw what they did to that old man. They will shoot you without pity if you try to stop them. So consider your words next time."

"Haymitch's right, Effie. These aren't the safer times", Cinna agreed.

Effie held her breath a moment quite impressed and then she stated in her preppiest voice "I'm a Capitol citizen. They wouldn't hurt me, I'm positive about it."

Haymitch stood up and approached the woman staggering a little to stop right in front of the place where she was seated.

"Don't be so positive and watch out. It's all I'm saying", he said while tracing Effie's jawline with his index finger. "We don't want that beautiful head of yours splashed all over the place."

After that, he headed to the door and disappeared through it, leaving Effie both confused and embarrassed.

 _-oooooo-_

 _A very short one this time. I wanted to depict a scene where Haymitch told Effie they were in danger in his rough way. I'm looking forward to knowing your opinions._


	6. Chapter 6: Stress, tension, anxiety

_This takes place during the team's two day stay at the Capitol right before the 74_ _th_ _Victory Ball._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 6: Stress, tension, anxiety**

Katniss, Peeta and their prep team arrived at the Capitol in the morning of the thirteenth day of the Victory Tour. They were given a luxurious four room penthouse at the greatest hotel in the city for their stay. Effie, Cinna and the rest of the team had their own places in the Capitol, of course, but the escort's job forced her to live with her tributes or victors during the Games and the Tours, so Effie had to remain at the hotel.

They were allowed to enjoy one and a half free days in the city before the Victory Ball took place the next evening, without any schedule -apart from going that very morning to Caesar Flickerman's studios to shoot Peeta's proposal so the presenter could have the footage on TV in the evening-. Effie volunteered to show them the most important things in the Capitol. The woman had arranged everything to be perfect for Katniss and Peeta, but she realized the young couple was very far from being happy, despite their engagement. They agreed to go with her to the History Museum that afternoon after lunch -while Haymitch paid a visit to the hotel bar-, but both refused to attend an opera in the evening, therefore they ate a light dinner without waiting for Haymitch to come back from the bar and went to bed.

Effie felt quite miserable due to their attitude. She sat alone in the opulent dinning-room of their suite with a glass of Irish cream in her hand. Two avoxes started to remove the dishes from the table, but Effie stopped them: she imagined that Haymitch would be hungry when he arrived at the penthouse and moreover, she thought it would be good for him to eat something to absorb all the alcohol he had drunk. The two avoxes bowed and disappeared without a noise. The escort didn't know why she still cared for Haymitch, it must be something automatic. Then she heard the man open the door and close it behind him. He went straight to the dinning-room and found Effie seated at the table.

"I thought you would be going to the Opera House tonight", he said without any surprise in his tone. Of course. Effie realized Haymitch already knew that Katniss and Peeta would refuse to attend it. He didn't appear to be too drunk despite the amount of hours he had spent at the bar.

"And I thought you would be sober by now, given the circumstances", she stroke back as he took a seat across from her at the table.

Haymitch didn't take offense at the comment but smiled and started to help himself to some seafood.

"You should come with us when we go out", Effie advised changing the subject.

"I don't like the Capitol and its stuff, you know it. I prefer to stay here where I can drink and sleep. Too bad I'm forced to go to the Ball tomorrow".

"When are you going to act as a mentor, Haymitch? I can understand you are mad at the Games, but we are here to enjoy now. You aren't here to give them two kids to be killed on TV. It's a big difference."

"No, princess, there's no difference at all. Anyway, this is no place to talk about it", Haymitch decided to cut off the conversation. He knew they could be overseen.

"I'm just looking for some help from you, that's all", the escort said losing heart.

They remained silent. Haymitch didn't really know what to say. He understood Katniss and Peeta perfectly, but he could see Effie's point as well, though he never sided with her.

"I spent nearly five months arranging the Tour for them" she continued. Haymitch had the impression that Effie was kind of putting her heart out to him. "I really care for Katniss and Peeta, I swear."

"Well, I know, Effie, and they know it too, but I think you should... give them their own space."

"But I'm not allowed to leave them by themselves outside while in the Victory Tour", the escort said to justify herself.

"Then let them decide where you bring them. This is difficult for them. It's a matter of perspective: everybody in the Capitol see them as two lucky teenagers in deep love. However, in the districts we see them as two unfortunate kids who survived the Games and became the puppets of the Capitol."

Effie didn't say anything, she sighed instead. Her face was sad but still she took a gracious sip from her glass.

Deep inside, Haymitch felt sorry for her. Effie wasn't a bad person, all in all; she had just been raised up as any other Capitol citizen and it was very difficult for her to understand why district people couldn't enjoy massive parties or the Games as she did, but she tried sometimes. The mentor put down his fork slowly and got up, then went around the table to where Effie was seated and stood behind her. She stiffened a little when he placed his hands on her shoulders and started massaging them. Haymitch wasn't good at comforting people, but he remembered how he would have liked to have somebody by his side who could have shown him some affection in the worst days. After a few seconds he knew it worked, because Effie's shoulders became less tense, she left her glass on the table and leaned back on him. The mentor kept on rubbing her shoulders for a while. Effie's contact was pleasant, but he knew the dangers of getting too attached. After a few minutes he said in his most soothing voice:

"When Katniss and Peeta get up tomorrow morning, offer them several possibilities and let them choose, alright? I will go with you three as well. But don't get angry if they decide to stay here: there's so much stuff in their minds right now."

He sensed Effie's silent nod against his chest. After that, he squeezed her shoulders and advised her to got to sleep. The escort wasn't in the mood for disagreeing, so she stood up, thanked him in a very low voice and headed to her luxurious bedroom. Then Haymitch sat back at the table and went on eating his seafood.

Effie removed her make-up, took off her iridescent wig, got undressed and put on her silky nightgown. Her movements were slow and careful, gracious and smooth. When she got into bed, the escort covered herself with the duvet and only then she let her mind wander. It always surprised her when Haymitch showed his tender side. There was still something human inside him that neither the Games nor his job as a mentor had been able to kill and Effie had to admit that she liked it. But that feeling was very dangerous. Some years ago, when the escort had started working with him, she promised herself that she would never let him notice her admiration for him since he had always been her favorite tribute and victor ever. As time went by, Effie realized that Haymitch was no longer the shadow of the great tribute she had admired in her youth: he had become a messy drunk man. It was true that Effie felt a jolt inside anytime Haymitch treated her well, but she was already an adult and had long overcome her infatuation. Yes. They kept a formal working relationship at the time and that was all. Her professionalism didn't allow her to consider something deeper, though she had grown fond of him despite his bad manners or all the bickering. Effie's eyelids began to close. Plus Haymitch promised to go with them the next morning and they would attend the Victory Ball in the evening. It would be a big, big day, no doubt.

When Effie fell asleep, a happy smile remained in her lips.

 _-oooooo-_

 _As always, thanks for reading. Your reviews would be much appreciated._


	7. Chapter 7: The Victory Ball

_Here we go again, now right at the end of the 74_ _th_ _Victory Tour: the Victory Ball._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 7: The Victory Ball**

The next morning, Effie woke up with renewed energy. There was something warm inside her chest, but she didn't know what it was: illusion, maybe; adrenalin, probably. She had a big, big day lying ahead. The escort whistled all the time while getting dressed. When she was ready, Effie went to the dinning-room, where a copious breakfast was waiting for her. Everything was absolutely perfect.

After a while, Peeta showed up and joined her with a shy smile on his face.

"Hi, Effie. Good morning", he greeted.

"Good morning, Peeta. I hope you slept well."

"Yes, thank you."

"Do you know if Katniss is already awake?", Effie asked tentatively. She may be sticking her nose where she didn't.

"She is. She'll be joining us in a minute."

He had just said that when Katniss appeared to confirm his words.

"Morning."

"Katniss, it's so good to see you. I hope you enjoyed your bed. I asked for a full viscoelastic mattress for my victors. It has lots of advantages if you sleep the way you-", Effie informed.

"Yes, Effie. Thank you", the girl cut her off.

"Alright, then. Well, now I would like to give you some options for today's visit", Effie went on as she held out some pamphlets to them. "Choose the most appealing to you. But..." she paused and sighed "... if you want to stay here to rest, I will accept it."

"Oh, that's very kind of you, Effie", Peeta thanked her with a slight surprise in his voice.

"By the way, Haymitch said he was interested in coming with us. I'd better go fetch him while you decide."

Then the escort left, so she couldn't see Katniss looking at Peeta out of the corner of her eye or the boy lifting his eyebrows in disbelief.

Effie arrived at Haymitch's bedroom and knocked gently. When she didn't obtain any response, she knocked louder, but with the same result, so the woman opened the door. A strong smell came up from the room and hit her nose: alcohol. The escort tutted and ventured inside.

"Haymitch?", she called.

The mentor didn't even move. Effie approached him and shook his shoulder. Thanks to the corridor lights, she realized that Haymitch still had his previous day clothes on. At what time did he stop drinking last night? When did he go to bed?

"Mmm", a muffled sound came from his mouth.

"Haymitch, it's time to get up. You promised to spend the morning with us, remember?", Effie insisted.

He raised his head a little and half-opened his eyes to look at her.

"I didn't."

"Oh, yes, you did. And you're coming, so get up, take a shower and get dressed. Now."

Then the mentor stood on his elbow with some difficulties and took her hand all of a sudden.

"You could spend the morning with me", he said getting tongue-tied.

Effie was taken aback and blushed. The mentor was clearly drunk. She freed herself from his grip and shouted: "Haymitch! Don't... insult me. If you aren't coming with us, fine, but don't make a fool of yourself."

"Fine. I'm not going", he confirmed and let himself fall into the bed again. Seconds before, he started snoring.

Poor Effie felt a wave of rage running through her veins, but she didn't feel like screaming at him. She felt betrayed and just wanted to cry. It was her fault: she shouldn't have trusted him at all. The woman couldn't avoid some sobs escaping through her teeth, but she didn't mind because nobody was there to hear her, not even Haymitch, asleep as he was. Effie wiped two liquid pearls from her eyes with her fingertips, she recovered a little and exited the room closing the door behind her.

When she arrived at the dinning-room -where Peeta and Katniss had chosen to visit the Presidential Park- she had a smile already plastered all over her face. Effie informed the couple that Haymitch wouldn't join them for the walk and urged them to take their coats since it was cold outside. Then they left the penthouse ready to enjoy the morning.

 _-oooooo-_

Although Katniss didn't want to admit it, she liked the place. On their way back to the hotel, she and Peeta commented some fantastic things they had seen. The girl would have liked her sister and Gale to be there as well, to feed the squirrels or be amazed by some rare tree species. Effie was satisfied and thanked both teenagers in silence for their interest: she needed it.

They got to the penthouse at noon and they found their lunch ready on the table. Peeta was really hungry due to all the miles they had walked. He didn't understand how Effie could stand their pace with those heels. And she didn't even look tired. Certainly, she was a cut above the rest.

Surely their chatting woke up Haymitch, since he showed up at the dinning-room just a moment later. His clothes and hair were a mess. It didn't go unnoticed to Katniss and Peeta that Effie didn't even look at him. It was quite odd, actually: reprimanding Haymitch was like the national sport to Effie. The man greeted them lazily and sat down next to Peeta, who started to tell him about the Presidential Park.

"Take it easy, boy. My head is about to explode", Haymitch cut him off.

Silence settled down on the table for a few seconds, but then Effie resumed the conversation.

"Let's plan our schedule for the next hours. As soon as we-"

"Oh, God, could you please wait until we've finished our lunch?", the mentor asked rubbing his temples.

"No", her answer was curt. "By the way, I ignored the word _please_ was in your dictionary".

Haymitch looked at her frowning, half bothered, half surprised, and the same did Katniss and Peeta. The escort went on, addressing the kids again and not paying Haymitch any more attention: "As I was saying, as soon as we finish our meals, Cinna, Portia and the rest of the stylists will drop by to help you with your clothes. You'll love your dress and hairstyle, Katniss. I made sure they included a braid headband for you."

"That's great", the girl claimed with a total lack of enthusiasm.

"Attitude, Katniss. Attitude!", Effie warned her.

The rest of the afternoon passed without any incidents, except for Haymitch vomiting everything he had eaten since the previous night. The young couple got dressed with matching outfits: they were radiant and Effie loved the way they looked together. Peeta seemed to bloom when he put on his jacket and started to act as an elegant gentleman. As for Katniss, Cinna's designs kept getting better: her black dress shoulder pads were clearly inspired by bird's feathers, which gave the girl an ethereal look.

Effie chose a pastel lilac dress whose collar resembled a big tulle rose and a matching wig. She spent nearly three hours getting ready, but the effort was worth it, as everybody praised her for her decision. When Haymitch appeared she had to admit that he looked absolutely stunning in his silky vest and tailcoat. Effie even noticed that he had taken a shower and smelt nice.

"Wow, Haymitch. You look like Prince Charming", Katniss said elbowing him in the ribs.

"Shut up, sweetheart. You should look at yourself in the mirror."

"Come on, come on, kids. It's getting late", Effie interrupted and began to push them towards the door.

The whole team arrived at the Presidential Palace in two limousines, one for the three victors and their escort and the other for their stylists. Effie was the only one who couldn't remain silent all along the trip. She explained lots of unimportant things to Katniss and Peeta, who knew she was far more excited than them. A huge amount of people was waiting for them at the entrance. Effie led the children through the gardens without looking back at Haymitch, who stayed at the fences to wait for Cinna. The mentor didn't want any attention for him, so he let Effie escort them to the place.

Once inside the palace, he looked for a drink straightaway and found an isolated corner from where he could see everything without being in the middle of the party. Cinna followed him and used the solitude they were in to tell him that Plutarch Heavensbee himself attended the celebration.

"He would like to talk to you. If you don't mind, I'll inform him you're here."

Haymitch nodded and took a sip from his drink. He knew they were playing with fire, but now that there was a chance to stand up to the Capitol, they couldn't waste it.

"By the way, Effie is very mad at you", Cinna added.

"Are you just pretending or are you serious?"

"You know I'm serious", the stylist answered without looking at him. "What did you do to her?"

"I didn't behave well, but there's no need to get like that about it", Haymitch drank again. "I promised her I would spend this morning around the Capitol with her, Katniss and Peeta, but I got too drunk to get up. And I might have said something inappropriate to her as well", Haymitch knew too well he had treated Effie bad: he wasn't even asleep when he pretended to be snoring for her to leave him alone, so he heard the escort crying, but still didn't manage to find the strength to get up.

"You should show some consideration to her, Haymitch. Effie cares about Katniss and Peeta, and you mean something to her. She would kill me if she knew I'm telling you this, because she hates when people notice her emotions, but I'm kind of friends with her and I would like you to make her work quite easier", Cinna tried not to sound too critical.

"Alright, alright. I will apologize. Sounds good enough to you?", Haymitch asked lifting his eyebrows.

"Yes. That would do for now. Thanks."

As if she had been summoned, Effie appeared to inform Cinna that one of Katniss's braids came undone. The stylist assured her he would fix it and headed to where Katniss and Peeta were trying every Capitol delicacy. Effie was about to follow him when she felt Haymitch's hand closing around her elbow.

"Effie, wait."

"What do you want? I'm working."

"I know, but I need to talk to you", Haymitch insisted without letting go of her.

"I don't think this is the right moment or place, do you? I have to keep an eye on Peeta and Katniss. I can't stay here talking to you, completely out of sight."

"Then, let's dance", he said without a second thought. The mentor slid his hand from Effie's elbow to her hand and grabbed it. After that, he dragged her to the dance floor.

"Haymitch, I don't feel like-"

"It's a tradition, isn't it? Mentors and escorts use to dance together. Nobody will be surprised", Haymitch said staring at her. Effie doubted, so he resumed his request: "Do me a favor, sweetheart: don't make it more difficult. I just want to talk."

The mentor stood there waiting for an answer. Then, Effie sighed and approached him reluctantly. She put her left hand on his shoulder and let him hold her right one in his, but she didn't break the distance between them.

"Alright, speak, quickly", the escort demanded as they started gliding over the dance floor quite clumsily. Effie realized that she found Haymitch's proximity slightly intoxicating. She could feel the warmth of his left hand pressed against her waist.

"I'm sorry about this morning."

"I wonder why."

"I know it was a nasty thing to say and I'm not proud of it."

They remained silent for a while after this statement. Then Effie asked: "Do you hate me, Haymitch?"

The mentor frowned and shook his head.

"No, I don't hate you", he said taking a step closer to her. "I'm mean to you -I'm mean to everybody, actually-, because I can't stand myself. I'm a selfish man and I defend myself from the world with a permanent attack and feigned indifference, you know. I meant it when I said I wanted to go with you three this morning, but I drank myself blind last night and I was a mess when you came fetch me."

The man opened his heart to her with some doubts at the beginning, but once he started sharing, he didn't allow himself to stop.

"You could try to give up drinking. That would improve your quality of life and your mood."

"It isn't that easy, I swear. I would need some willpower and a detox, and we don't have any center at Twelve."

"You could stay at the Capitol for that. They could help-", Effie started to offer, but Haymitch cut her off.

"No way, sweetheart. This is what I've become. This is what they created. I'm sorry."

Effie looked away and didn't say anything. Haymitch stared at her for a moment, then he twisted the corner of his mouth and said:

"But I don't hate you, though you have the ability to drive me mad. This Prince Charming would defend you in case anybody picked on you. We are a team."

That time it was Effie who stepped a little closer to him. She shook her head pursing her lips to fight back a smile.

"Do you forgive me?", Haymitch asked, knowing the battle was already won.

"Yes, I think so", she answered.

At that moment, the mentor dipped his head to kiss her cheek in appreciation, so Effie blushed. When Haymitch leaned back again they stared at each other, the escort's heart racing. She saw the mentor's tongue licking his lips with a disapproving frown and then he said: "You shouldn't put on so much makeup. You taste awful."

"Oh, Haymitch, you're a hopeless case", Effie told him, but she was no longer angry.

Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of Plutarch Heavensbee and they broke apart, her hand still in Haymitch's when the new Head Gamemaker reached them.

"Mr. Heavensbee, what a pleasure to see you here", she greeted him, a broad smile on her lips.

"Good evening, Miss Trinket, Mr. Abernathy. I'm sorry for the interruption. I was wondering if you could introduce me to your victors, Miss Trinket", Plutarch explained.

"Of course, don't mention it! This way, please", the escort offered and she headed to where Peeta and Katniss were dancing too.

It seemed to Haymitch that she looked happier than before, so he felt relieved. He wasn't a bad person and he didn't want Effie to feel miserable because of him. The man stared at the escort as she moved away from him, followed by Plutarch Heavensbee, who turned his head midway to nod at Haymitch. The mentor nodded back: they would talk later, during Snow's speech, to set the next movements of the rebels.

Maybe Haymitch wasn't as selfish as he always wanted everybody to believe.

 _-oooooo-_

 _This one's very long! I hope you liked it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks for your support. :)_


	8. Chapter 8: Building bridges

_Now we start with the prelude to the 75_ _th_ _Hunger Games. Snow asks Plutarch Heavensbee for advice and he decides to introduce a wrinkle: the Tributes for the Quarter Quell will be reaped from the existing pool of Victors._ _This chapter takes place right before the 75_ _th_ _Reaping._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 8: Building bridges**

The train arrived at District Twelve nearly two hours before the Reaping, as usual, for the workers to assemble the stage where the event would take place. The peacekeepers started to spread around the Justice Building and the cameras as well.

Effie felt very nervous and scared, because for the first time in eleven years she didn't want to be there. At last she knew how people in the Districts felt about the Reaping, and that emotion was very dangerous: she wasn't supposed to empathize with district people. Like everyone in Panem, the escort had watched the program where President Snow had announced the special characteristics of the Third Quarter Quell. She had thought it was a nightmare. Effie remembered being at a party surrounded by other Capitol celebrities. Then President Snow had opened the fatal envelope, and the next thing she could recall was somebody gently patting her in the face, as she lay unconscious on a couch. Her three victors, her team, her friends would have to fight for their lives again in the arena. She didn't want to lose neither dear Peeta nor disobedient Katniss, as they were the first tributes she had been able to save and she had grown too fond of them during the Victor's Tour.

And, of course, she didn't want to lose Haymitch. Despite his manners and alcoholism, he was kind of a constant in her life. They'd been working together for eleven years and they'd been through so many hard times... Effie would even miss the bickering, but especially the friendly moments.

Would she be professional enough to conceal her feelings from the peacekeepers, from the audience, from President Snow? This was what the escort was wondering while she made her way through Twelve to Haymitch's house. At first, she told herself it was better not to visit her victors in order to make it easier for all of them. But then she realized she should check on Haymitch. Perhaps she could help him accept the idea of showing up at the Reaping instead of staying at home for the peacekeepers to fetch him. Therefore Effie made an excuse in front of the Head Peacekeeper to head towards the Victor Village.

When she reached the place, the woman threw a sad look at Katniss and Peeta's houses and tried not to imagine what they and their families would be feeling. Then Effie led herself to Haymitch's door and knocked. She remembered the previous year and couldn't believe how much everything had changed for them. Against all odds, Effie didn't have to wait for long: one minute later, the door half-opened and Haymitch's face appeared behind it in the shadows. He stared at the escort with resignation and then went back into the house, leaving the door open for Effie to enter when she felt like it. She bit her lower lip and followed him inside before closing the front door behind her back. She stood in the hall for a while, not sure if he wanted her there, but finally Effie went to the kitchen, where she knew Haymitch would be.

She found him seated in one of his kitchen chairs, his left hand on the table holding a bottle of whiskey. The woman leaned back against the counter twisting her gloves.

"Do you want some coffee?", Haymitch offered under his breath.

Effie shook her head. Instead she leaned forward to grab his bottle and took a sip right from it. Haymitch recalled the moment when Katniss had arrived at his house after the announcement of the Quarter Quell and had done exactly the same. Effie gave him the bottle back and sighed.

"How are you?", she asked in a whisper.

Haymitch didn't answer. He just shrugged and closed his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Haymitch."

The man opened his eyes again to look at her. "I know, Effie. It isn't your fault."

Haymitch hardly ever called her by her name. "I didn't want this to happen", she went on. "I don't want to pick your names for the Games. This is so unfair and..."

"Be quiet. You have to do your job, alright?", he demanded. He couldn't be sure anybody was spying on what they said. "You have to sound as cheerful as always. Go back there and be careful."

Effie had dropped her eyes, but she didn't move when Haymitch finished. The mentor gazed at her dress, full of butterflies, and he had a sense of foreboding: butterflies symbolized death, souls. How would they come out of that situation well? Then he saw her approaching the chair he was sat in. Effie put a gloved hand on his shoulder in silence and looked down at him. The man held her gaze for a second before saying:

"Remember that the next time we'll see each other, I won't be a mentor anymore, but a tribute."

Effie gulped and blinked repeatedly to contain the tears which had started to form behind her eyes -she couldn't show traces of tears in her makeup back on stage-, her hand still on the man's shoulder. Then suddenly Haymitch put his right arm around Effie's waist to bring her closer and rested the side of his head against her chest. The escort didn't see that coming, so it took her off-guard. At first she raised her hands as if somebody was aiming a gun at her and held her breath, but after a few seconds she relaxed and covered the free side of Haymitch's face with her hand to comfort him. The man could hear Effie's fast heart beats and somehow they sounded like music to him. They lost count of the time they remained in that position, the escort stroking his hair with her fingers.

After some minutes, Haymitch drew apart and stared at her, but didn't say anything. Then he nodded for her to know he already felt quite better. He didn't want her to stay too long at his house. Maybe the Head Peacekeeper Thread was wondering where she was and if he caught Effie and Haymitch getting on too well, they would be in trouble.

The escort patted his shoulder one last time and turned around to leave. She arrived at the front door quickly and tried to calm down before going out. She had a tough task lying ahead and she must remain serene, as Effie as possible. The escort raised her chin, took a deep breath and opened the door to go back to the Justice Hall.

The die was cast.

 _-oooooo-_

 _I was looking forward to writing this chapter. I hope everyone liked it. Thanks for reading!_


	9. Chapter 9: The flat roof

_Well, this is what happened when Effie and Haymitch said goodbye to Peeta and Katniss the night before the 75_ _th_ _Hunger Games._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 9: The flat roof**

Haymitch had never seen Effie cry so often in eleven years. He had even started feeling sorry for her. The escort always had her eyes full of tears lately: when she picked their names from the glass bowls, all along the trip to the Capitol, when she saw Katniss in her wedding dress... So Haymitch tried to keep her away from them as much as possible to spare her some suffering. Besides, her display of emotions put her in great danger since the whole bloody Capitol had their eyes right upon them.

Effie stayed backstage during Katniss and Peeta's interviews, while Haymitch and Cinna headed to their reserved seats among the rest of the audience. So when Peeta said there was a baby on its way, Haymitch knew how he would find Effie when he went backstage again. She was hyperventilating and fanning herself with her hand. The mentor looked for a lonely place and took her aside to tell her the baby stuff was a lie to stop the Games.

"Oh, thank God", Effie said regaining her composure.

They went back together where the other mentors and escorts stood, waiting for their tributes. Then a man in a dark suit appeared and told the escorts to lead their respective tributes to their suites and to go to the Training Center meeting room within thirty minutes, because he needed to have a talk with the escorts and mentors. The man was right under President Snow's instructions and he had been ordered to communicate the resolution about the celebration of the Games. Everyone in Panem was waiting for this decision.

When Effie, Peeta and Katniss reached their suite, the escort tried to reassure them before going to her bedroom to change her clothes. She was determined to show some support to their victors, so she put on her golden wig and a colorful dress, and then she left for the meeting room, where Haymitch was already waiting for her. She sat down next to him and started wringing her fingers.

"How is it possible-", Haymitch began to tease her when he noticed the new outfit she was wearing, but he stopped. "Never mind."

The man in black entered the room escorted by two peacekeepers and announced the feared news: the Games would be held anyway. President Snow was devastated due to Katniss's pregnancy, but his decision was irrevocable. After five minutes of protests and questions, the man left the room and every mentor and escort went back to their tributes to inform them.

Effie could barely talk because she got a lump on her throat, so she didn't say anything in the elevator. Haymitch respected her silence. When they opened the suite door, Effie asked for a minute and she disappeared inside her bedroom. Whatever she did, it didn't take her long, as she showed up after just thirty seconds. She brought two black boxes in her hands and Haymitch thought she wanted to give Peeta and Katniss some goodbye presents. If she knew about the rebellion... It was likely that she could never see them again, whether they died in the arena or not.

They found the children waiting for them in the living-room of the suite. They stood up with eagerness, but their eyes betrayed them: both Katniss and Peeta knew that nothing would prevent the Games from being celebrated. Haymitch confirmed it and then Effie gave her presents to the boys. Haymitch didn't expect it, that was why he sounded quite ungrateful when he opened the box. He had completely forgotten about the matching tokens. Something melted inside his chest at the sight of the golden bangle and suddenly he understood Effie's change of clothes. That was the only way she knew to show her disagreement, her support: fashion. The escort broke down in front of them, it was clear she couldn't pretend anymore. After she hugged Peeta and Katniss, Effie apologized for everything, then she threw a heartbreaking look at Haymitch and left the living-room. The mentor hugged the kids as well and advised them to stay alive. After that he promised Katniss he would save Peeta. With his emotions on edge, it wasn't easy to lie to her. Rebels made absolutely clear that everybody must keep Katniss alive, not Peeta. Haymitch would do his best to save him anyway, but he wasn't able to guarantee the boy's survival.

Haymitch left the couple to their things and, his token still in hand, he went down to the fourth floor to say goodbye to Finnick. He felt a pang of guilt because he was about to give Finnick the golden bangle Effie had just gifted him, but it was necessary. They couldn't hang about for long, so District Twelve's mentor got quickly to the point: Finnick must wear his bangle in the arena to show Katniss they were allies. Haymitch wished him good luck and left for the penthouse.

Katniss and Peeta were no longer in the living-room, so their mentor supposed they would have locked themselves inside their quarters. Haymitch didn't feel like doing the same yet, so he went up to the flat roof to breath a little fresh air. And, to his astonishment, he met Effie up there. The escort had her back turned to the crystal sliding doors, so she didn't notice him behind her. Haymitch could see her shoulders shaking and he heard the noise of her sobbing as well. He approached Effie and she turned her head to check who it was.

"I'm alright. I'm-I'm getting over it", she stuttered wiping her eyes with her fingertips.

Haymitch put his arm around her shoulders. He knew it was dangerous, as somebody could be watching, but he couldn't see poor Effie crying like that. She was fully on their side, he didn't have any doubts.

The truth was that Effie was far from getting over anything, so she kept weeping, maybe even harder. She couldn't help it, she couldn't stop thinking about how unfair the situation was for her children.

"Come here", Haymitch said and he wrapped her in a warm embrace.

Effie wasn't strong enough to resist by then, so she hugged his middle and hid her face in the mentor's neck in order to give free rein to her tears. She felt his toned arms around her and in some way she thought everything would be okay.

"We'll take care of them. I promise", Haymitch assured her while he rubbed her back. He knew some promising plans he wasn't allowed to tell her, but his confidence would do the trick to comfort Effie.

Gradually the escort calmed down. Haymitch kept rocking her silently until he sensed she was no longer weeping. He couldn't deny he liked the feeling of having Effie wrapped up in his arms. The mentor knew she was tough and bossy, but she looked so vulnerable at the same time... Haymitch stroked her nape with his fingers and he felt how Effie tightened her grip around his waist. After a few minutes, she stepped back and stared at the mentor as she left a sigh out. He raised a hand to caress her cheek and half-smiled, which made her smile a little as well.

"Oh, look at your T-shirt. I ruined it", Effie regretted while she rubbed the wet and stained spot on his shoulder.

"I couldn't care less about it, sweetheart."

Then Haymitch put an arm around her waist to led her back to the penthouse and Effie rested her head on his shoulder. They didn't know why that felt so right, but it did.

Both got inside and only parted ways when they arrived at Effie's bedroom. The escort squeezed his forearm in gratitude, then she disappeared behind the door. Haymitch stood there for a while rubbing his forehead.

Suddenly he realized he wouldn't be able to leave her behind.

 _-oooooo-_

 _These two are getting closer! Review, please. I need to know what you think. Thanks!_


	10. Chapter 10: Welcome to the revolution

_This chapter tells how our main characters ran away from the Capitol after the 75_ _th_ _Hunger Games._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 10: Welcome to the revolution**

It was late. Darkness had started to fall around the Capitol, but nobody dared to leave the scores hall. Every eye was fixed upon the screens that showed Katniss and Peeta kissing on the beach. Effie was seated next to Haymitch in a white couch and she let a sigh out before biting her lower lip.

"They're too cute, aren't they?", she asked the mentor, but it was rhetorical.

Haymitch couldn't look away from the children. That was a real kiss, perhaps the only real one between Katniss and Peeta. Somehow that one was different from the others and he noticed it. He felt a jolt of anger: how was he going to let Peeta die?

Then Johanna called them and the magic broke. Suddenly something clicked in Haymitch's brain: Beetee had already explained his allies about the plan -the fake one for Snow not to suspect-, so then it was when the group would head to the huge tree to carry it out. The mentor leaned towards Effie's ear.

"Listen to me, sweetheart. I need you to go up to the penthouse and lock the door. Wait for me at the flat roof, alright?", he commanded.

"Haymitch, what-", the escort started to ask, her eyes wide open, but he didn't let her go on.

"There's no time for explanations. Please, do what I told you. Don't leave the penthouse under any circumstances, just wait for me. I'll be there in a minute. Do you think you'll be able to do it?"

"Y-Yes, but I don't-"

"I know it's difficult to understand, but it's vital", he assured Effie. Haymitch held her gaze trying to foresee if she would obey. He knew he shouldn't do that, since he hadn't told anyone about Effie. He might be risking the whole bloody mission, but he was determined. After a while, he patted the side of her face and left presumably for the toilet.

Effie waited a few seconds before leaving as well, but she headed towards the penthouse instead. Her heart was pounding harder than ever. What did Haymitch want? It couldn't be of any good with all that secrecy. She got in the elevator and pressed the twelfth button with trembling hands. When she arrived at the higher suite of the Training Center hotel, she locked the door, just as Haymitch had told her to do, and went to the flat roof. Though it was summertime, night breeze enveloped her, so she wrapped herself up in her shawl. Effie paced the floor impatiently, her anxiety increasing.

The escort didn't know how long she had been waiting when she heard a quick knock at the main door. At first she was tempted to open it, but then she thought that Haymitch had the keys as well, so he wouldn't need to knock to get in. Then the knock became a bang and an aggressive voice shouted: "Open the door to the peacekeepers!". Effie's temples started throbbing in fear and the only thing that came to her mind was that she was about to die. She curled up in a dark corner of the terrace and trembled, hoping for the peacekeepers to turn around and leave her alone. However, that didn't happen: the peacekeepers forced the main door open and burst in.

Poor Effie only wanted to scream. She heard some heavy steps going round the penthouse searching for her, for them; she didn't know, actually. It was a matter of time before the guards found her. And of course it happened. A tall peacekeeper stepped out of the suite and spotted Effie cringing in her corner. He approached her yelling orders and grabbed her arm to make her stand up.

"Let go of me!", Effie shouted showing more confidence than expected. "I'm a Capitol citizen. This is an abuse of authority!"

The peacekeeper didn't seem to be willing to release her and, though Effie resisted as much as she could, the man was stronger than her. He held the escort so violently by her waist that he nearly lifted her from the floor and started to drag her inside the penthouse.

But, suddenly, something hit her captor from behind and he let go of Effie, who fell to the floor. She turned around just in time to see Haymitch handling a long metal stick. The peacekeeper quickly recovered from the first blow and aimed his gun at Haymitch. Fortunately, the mentor was faster and he hit the man's weapon with one of the stick ends, then he swung the stick again to break the peacekeeper's temple. The guard collapsed next to Effie and moved no more.

"Are you alright, princess?", Haymitch asked while helping her to get onto her feet. The escort threw her arms around his neck breathing heavily. Then she stepped a little back but without breaking contact.

"Haymitch, did you... kill him?"

"No, but he isn't going to bother us in a while", the mentor answered, dropping the stick.

"Where did you find that?", Effie demanded.

"I always knew those ugly curtains would be useful someday."

"Why did it take you so long to show up? I was losing my mind up here, and then this awful man found me... By the way, aren't there any other peacekeepers looking for us?", Effie grabbed Haymitch's lapels to force him to answer.

"Calm down. Of course there are more, but I disabled the elevators and blocked the door, so they will have some troubles getting in here."

"Why are we doing this, Haymitch?", Effie started to shiver. "I'm very frightened."

The mentor put his hands on her upper arms and rubbed them. "I know, but this is necessary. I'll explain you everything later, when we're safe, alright? Do you trust me?"

Effie stayed silent for a few seconds, but then she nodded.

"Fine", he said with a sigh. Suddenly Haymitch heard the air moving above their heads and looked up to see a Capitol hovercraft approaching.

"What's that?", Effie asked in fear.

"That, sweetheart, is salvation."

Haymitch made Effie move backwards to make room for the hovercraft to land. When the ramp started to open, they heard a bang on the main door and they knew that the peacekeepers had reached the penthouse. Some seconds after that the guards battered the door down and got in. Haymitch covered Effie's body with his while the ramp hit the floor. Then the mentor helped her up, his body still working as a shield for her. The shooting started right when they were running up the ramp.

"Come on, come on!", they heard Plutarch Heavensbee's voice encouraging them coming from the hovercraft. If he felt surprised due to Effie's presence, he didn't mention it.

The Head Gamemaker held out his hand to grab them. The bullets flew gliding over their heads. Once inside the hovercraft, Haymitch pushed Effie to their right and forced her to kneel down beside a huge metal box. Then he knelt next to her and hugged her from behind.

"Take off! Now!", Plutarch shouted addressing the pilots.

The hovercraft left the flat roof with the ramp still opened, so they could see the peacekeepers arriving at the terrace and aiming their guns up to knock them down. But, fortunately, it was too late for that. When the ramp closed a heavy silence ensued, only broken by Effie's attempts to regain her breath and Haymitch's shushing noises.

"Haymitch, we'll have a word later. Now you two calm down. We're heading to the arena. Beetee and the others are about to do it", Heavensbee said and left them alone when Haymitch nodded.

The mentor knew they wouldn't have much time before everything happened, and they must be in place to accomplish the rescue, but he sat down against the hovercraft wall and dragged Effie along with him until she was leaning against his chest. She was still wrapped in his arms and her breathing rhythm was slowing down.

"Are you hurt?", Haymitch asked her.

Effie shook her head with her eyes closed. She was regaining some composure. After a few seconds she said: "Where are we going?"

"We're going to save Katniss, Peeta and the other victors from the arena."

"Really? And after that?", Effie went on, her voice sounding quite neutral.

"We're heading to District Thirteen", Haymitch explained. "The Capitol didn't razed it to the ground as they've always made us believe. It still exists and their president's leading the rebellion against the Capitol."

The escort didn't say anything for a while. Then she worked out something and expressed it out loud: "So that makes me a rebel now."

"Yes, I suppose so. Exciting, isn't it?"

Effie freed herself from his embrace and got up staggering a little. Haymitch hurried up to help her, but she didn't take his hand. Her expression was unreadable.

"Therefore I will never be able to come back home", she said staring at him.

"That place isn't home anymore."

"I never asked you to rescue me, Haymitch", she spat suddenly.

"Oh, excuse me, sweetheart. I thought you didn't want to end up like Cinna, but I see I was wrong", the mentor replied quite angry.

"What happened to Cinna?", Effie's face changed to show interest and ignorance.

"He was murdered. How didn't you know your precious Capitol killed him two days ago for helping Katniss?", Haymitch didn't want to be merciful anymore. He felt hurt.

Effie was stunned. It was as if Haymitch had hit her with his metal stick. She was left speechless at first, then she asked under her breath: "Are you.. sure?"

"I am."

"But... But we are Capitol citizens... They would never dare to harm us."

"Wake up, Effie", Haymitch said snapping his fingers twice in front of her eyes. "There are no longer Capitol citizens. Now we have two sides: the rebels and the ones in favor of Snow's regime. And you've spent as much time as Cinna did with Katniss and Peeta, so what do you think it would have been your fate?"

The woman dropped her eyes and frowned in sorrow. As for Haymitch, he covered his face with his hands and let out a sigh. Suddenly he felt guilty for his brusqueness, but he didn't have time to apologize, as Plutarch Heavensbee came back and asked for Haymitch's help in the cockpit to begin with the victor's rescue.

"Miss Trinket, follow me, please. I will find you a comfortable place to stay during the trip", Heavensbee told Effie, who looked at Haymitch helplessly before leaving for another cabin.

Twelve's mentor shook his head, still a little annoyed. That woman was very difficult. He hoped he didn't have to regret his decision of saving her from the Capitol.

Somewhere deep inside he knew he wouldn't.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Yes, Effie will have to resign herself to accept her new situation. Poor thing. But I'm sure Haymitch will be there to help her... :)_

 _Read and review, please. Your comments encourage me! Thanks._


	11. Chapter 11: Reunions

_Now we delve into Mockingjay – Part 1. There must be a lot of moments between Effie and Haymitch during their stay at District Thirteen that remain untold, but I don't know how many of them I will be able to write. I noticed that they were closer at the end of Catching Fire, but I've got the impression that the next time they met again something got back to normal between them, to teasing instead of intimating, so I think I should depict a little step back in their relationship to make a progress later._

 _Alright, I'll shut up. You read and enjoy. :)_

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 11: Reunions**

When Plutarch Heavensbee went to Effie's quarters to inform her that Katniss had agreed to be the Mockingjay, the former escort showed as much dignity as she could, but both Plutarch and herself knew that she would help Katniss. That was her job and she was the only one who knew the poor girl down there, apart from Haymitch, of course, and she hadn't seen him since they arrived at District Thirteen. Effie was determined not to ask for him if he didn't show up, but she saw the opportunity to bring it up in front of Plutarch, and that was how she found out that Haymitch was drying out somewhere below her feet.

Effie met President Coin and criticized her looks internally. Then she shared her impressions with Plutarch. She had absolutely no doubt that the former Head Gamemaker was swallowing lots of things to maintain his position as a consultant, but he may be used to that since he had always lived in the Capitol.

The best moment for Effie was when she reunited with Katniss at the canteen. The girl seemed happy to meet her as well and they both hugged each other, which meant the first and only sign of affection she had been shown since her arrival. Katniss was the only family Effie really had left.

And then, during the first propo shoot, Haymitch reappeared. He didn't say anything to Effie at first, just looked at her intently with a mischievous smile on his lips instead, and headed to greet Katniss. It was when the footage was all filmed and in the editing room that Haymitch addressed to her.

"Hi, sweetheart. How are you doing?"

"Fine, thank you. I've spent a very nice time inside my cell", she answered in her way to the meeting room, where the team had been given an appointment in twenty minutes to analyze the resulting video. Haymitch caught the irony in her words, but didn't make an issue of it. Then Effie approached Katniss and congratulated her on her acting skills to get rid of Haymitch, so the man already headed to the meeting room, as he knew Katniss still felt uncomfortable in his presence. He should give her some time to forgive him for leaving Peeta behind.

Once in the room, none of them liked the propo. It sounded stilted and unnatural. Poor Katniss looked ashamed of herself: everybody was too harsh, too honest on her. Then Haymitch asked for some moments when everyone had loved Katniss for herself and Effie couldn't help but answering, and they ended up teasing each other like in the old times. Effie saw Katniss frown and smile slightly as if she had understood something all of a sudden. Finally they decided to put Katniss in the battle field to allow some spontaneity from her, which Effie didn't really liked.

When the meeting finished, Effie left Katniss and Gale in Beetee's hands to prepare the visit to District Eight and went to her quarters to change her clothes to say them goodbye, but a hand grabbed her elbow and held her back halfway. She turned around to face Haymitch, who still wore the same mischievous smile than before.

"So you're mad at me", the man affirmed letting go of her arm then putting his hands into his pockets.

"No, Haymitch, I'm just annoyed."

"Are you? Didn't they feed you or let you shower? Oh, I see, they didn't allow you to wear your heels, did they?", Haymitch mocked her.

Effie made a crooked face at him and said: "This place is insane. You brought me here and then you abandoned me. That's cruel, Haymitch. I'm surviving without coffee down here and I didn't hear anything from you in ages, so I-"

He tilted his head to look at Effie from another angle and confessed: "I missed you."

"- had to...", she stopped her complaints abruptly. "What did you say?"

"I missed you. I thought you would come and visit me in the facility, but you never dropped by."

"I-I didn't know where you were and-", she defended herself.

"And you didn't ask anyone", Haymitch cut her off. "I would have been happy to see you. It wasn't easy to go through the withdrawal alone, you know."

Effie dropped her eyes and remained silent. She started to feel kind of guilty; she could be so selfish sometimes...

"I'm sorry", she heard the words coming out of her mouth before she knew.

Haymitch got closer to her and held out his hand: "It's alright. Friends again?"

Effie raised her eyes to look at him and smiled a little: "Have we ever been friends before?"

"Never", Haymitch confirmed and they both laughed. Effie covered her mouth with the back of her hand to show some decency and manners.

When they regained their composure, it was the former escort who held out her hand, but Haymitch didn't shake it, he took it as if Effie were a princess instead and brought it to his mouth. When he was about to brush his lips against her fingers, Haymitch paused to look at Effie's startled expression. He was too tempted to lick her hand, but suddenly he realized that he felt more like kissing it, and so he did. Effie held her breath as long as the kiss lasted, that was for three or four seconds. Then Haymitch let go of her hand and Effie breathed out. She blushed a little which was funny for Haymith to notice, as he had never been able to see her real skin redden before under all her makeup.

"See you at Command in a couple of hours to see Katniss spark off the revolution from District Eight?", he invited Effie.

"S-Sure", she stuttered. Haymitch waved his hand and turned around, leaving her in the middle of the corridor as she rubbed unconsciously the point where the victor had kissed her hand.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Thanks for your kindness. Read and enjoy. ;)_


	12. Chapter 12: Nightmares

_Any night during Effie and Haymitch's stay at Thirteen, Haymitch is having one of his nightmares._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 12: Nightmares**

The night after District Eight suffered the bombings that were intended to kill Katniss and the hospital patients, Effie confined herself inside her quarters to rest. She was exhausted due to the tension of watching Katniss back in danger through a screen, but she was partly satisfied on how it all ended: at least her girl was alive and President Coin praised her in front of the entire population of District Thirteen. Effie didn't see Haymitch during Coin's speech. She wasn't surprised however, as she knew Haymitch pretty well by then and she was sure he couldn't stand so much cheering and servility towards a leader, as he always said.

The former escort undressed, put on her standard nightgown and took off her headscarf before getting into bed. Effie spent some minutes looking blindly at the ceiling while her mind paid tribute to Cinna, the rest of their prep team -all dead as she had found out lately- and poor Peeta, whom they hadn't heard anything from yet. A silent tear rolled down the corner of her eye into the pillow, then she sighed and curled up under the rough blanket to relax and forget.

When she was about to fall asleep, Effie suddenly heard a repetitive tapping, as if someone were knocking on a surface. She opened her eyes, still half-awake and she concentrated on the noise. It came from the room next to hers, where she knew Haymitch had been billeted. She started to perceive a panting as well, so she sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. That must be one of Haymitch's nightmares again. It wasn't the first time she heard him yell, as they had worked together for almost twelve years, but she didn't remember the tapping before, as if he were shaking badly, so she got up and put on her headscarf back just in case anyone was wandering through the corridors.

Effie went out of her room and headed to the one next to hers. She slid the door open just in time to hear a heart-rending scream coming from Haymitch's bed. She hurried to his side and verified he was trembling with violent spasms. His blanket was no longer covering him, but on the floor. The woman put her hand on his forehead and noticed he was colder than usual. Then she understood that he was having a nightmare and some problems going through the withdrawal all together. Effie shook his arm gently, as she didn't want to make him jump.

"Haymitch", she called softly, rubbing his arm at the same time to provide some warmth. "Haymitch, wake up, it's only a nightmare."

Suddenly, Haymitch woke up indeed. Everything happened in the blink of an eye: he grabbed Effie's upper arm in a harmful grip and dragged her towards him, then he sat up in a rush and pressed a knife against the woman's neck staring at her with his deranged eyes. She felt the cold blade bite her white skin a little and held her breath in awe. Where did he steal a knife in Thirteen?

"Haymitch, it's me, Effie. Please, don't hurt me... please", she pleaded with her heart beating violently against her chest and her eyes watering.

The mentor's expression changed when he realized that he wasn't dreaming anymore. He was panting heavily. Then he dropped his knife as if he couldn't believe what he had almost done and let go of Effie's arm. She stepped back cautiously, silent tears rolling down her cheeks. Eventually, she raised her hand to the point of her neck where Haymitch had aimed the blade and she discovered a red dot of blood on her fingertips.

"Effie, I'm-I'm so sorry... I didn't want to... I was so...", Haymitch tried to apologize, but he couldn't find the words. He was still very affected by his nightmare and upset by his nearly killing her.

The poor woman kept on getting away from his bed and when Haymitch tried to get up to make his excuses, she ran away from his quarters and hid inside hers. She had never been as afraid as she was then. Haymitch's bloodshot eyes piercing her while his knife also pierced her skin kept showing behind her eyelids. Effie felt sad and abandoned, because she knew that Haymitch would be feeling completely miserable, as he had never intended to hurt Effie in all their years as a team.

Suddenly, she heard her door slide open and she knew it was Haymitch. She wasn't ready for that yet, she needed to calm down and see things in a new light in the morning: Effie wasn't going to hold against him what it had just happened, but it was too fresh in her memory, so she curled up to face the bare wall of her room and pretended she was either asleep or unconscious. But Haymitch didn't swallow it. He could see her shaking under the blanket. The victor approached Effie's bed and he dared to slide under the blanket behind her without asking. She stiffened when she felt his body so close to her back, but still didn't move. Effie couldn't believe Haymitch's brazenness. They had made things clear about being friends, but getting into her bed was far too much. Besides, she couldn't help but being quite afraid of him for his recent aggressiveness.

"Hey, sweetheart", he tried as softly as he could, but she didn't answer. Haymitch hadn't touched her yet. "I'm so sorry, you have to believe me."

Effie remained silent for a little while and then she couldn't refrain herself from saying: "I do."

Haymitch sighed in relief and decided to get closer to her. When his chest was pressed against her shoulder blades he put his right arm around her waist tentatively. He considered a very good sign that she didn't shake him off, so he passed his other arm under her neck for her to rest her head on it. Of course Effie wasn't going to get rid of Haymitch: she was so in need of affection, she had missed him so much those first weeks in Thirteen... Being wrapped in the victor's arms was one of the best feelings she had experienced in her life and that felt both wrong and right at the same time.

"Could you forgive me, Effie?", he went on. "I don't know what to say to make you feel better. I was having a nightmare and you know that I can't cope with them well without alcohol, but that isn't an excuse."

Haymitch's voice sounded defeated, as if he thought he was useless. Suddenly he sensed a tiny drop splashing against the arm he kept under Effie's head: she was crying and that made him feel even more dejected.

"Don't cry, please. I never intended to hurt you, I swear. What can I do to get your forgiveness?"

"Stay tonight", she answered against all odds still staring at the wall. "But don't get used to it", Effie went on as if knowing she may be asking for too much.

"I wouldn't dare to dream, Princess", Haymitch said smiling at last.

"And, by the way, there's no need to forgive anything. I'm not angry with you, Haymitch, just a little scared and sad."

He understood her feelings perfectly, but he was also quite glad someway, as he got that nothing had broken between the two of them because of him. Haymitch tightened his embrace on Effie in gratitude and maybe something more. He couldn't explain why he was so worried about her wanting to run away from him. There was a time when he had wished for her to leave him alone, but things had changed a lot and, deep inside, Haymitch knew that he was starting to have feelings for her former escort. How funny and inappropriate was that?

"Did I hurt you?", he asked suddenly when he remembered that she had got her fingertips stained in blood after touching her neck.

"No, don't worry. It stopped bleeding right away. It's just a little puncture."

Haymitch caressed Effie's neck with his lips and he could tell she liked the contact because her whole body shivered and she relaxed in his arms. Then she intertwined her fingers with his and demanded: "What was your nightmare about? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not tonight. I'll tell you about them someday, I promise. Now sleep, sweetheart. I'll be watching your back, I owe you."

Effie smiled to herself. She felt better with Haymitch hugging her. Why was she so sure that he wasn't going to hurt her while she was sleeping? She just knew. And how did she come to need him so badly? Why did she allow herself to break down in front of him when she always showed a cheerful and bossy face to everyone else? Effie would have to answer those questions the next morning since she didn't have the strength to do it at the moment. With Haymitch's breath warming her nape she fell asleep sooner than ever.

As for him, Haymitch didn't want to go more deeply into his own feelings, because he knew that wars weren't exactly the rightest times to fall in love.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Dramatic and fluffy. I hope you liked this one!_


	13. Chapter 13: Time bomb

_This chapter takes place the night the Capitol attacks District Thirteen._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 13: Time bomb**

Poor Peeta looked even worse than the last time he had been on air. His eyes were red and puffy, and his face was drained of any color. He had been poorly made up for TV, though it could have been just on purpose to show his bad state, Haymitch thought. Katniss stormed in Command with Boggs and was taken aghast, her eyes watering. Her former mentor felt truly sorry for both Katniss and Peeta, as he had grown fond of them, though he had never admitted it out loud. Peeta's speech didn't change at all: the Capitol had turned him into a puppet through torture, clearly, but Haymitch wondered if the boy might still be trying to protect Katniss.

Then Beetee interfered with the Capitol transmission and launched the video with Katniss in District Twelve ruins for everyone in Panem to see. Then Peeta's voice changed to a terrified one and he warned Katniss that she was in great danger even in District Thirteen. Everybody who was in Command saw some hands grabbing Peeta to take him away and the video ended. Truth be told, living in a military district had its advantages when it came to war threats. As soon as Haymitch translated Peeta's words into a warning for them to survive a possible attack, President Coin didn't lose any time and ordered an air-raid drill.

Everyone started to move, even Katniss left Command to obey Coin's orders. Haymitch's first thought was to follow her to make sure she arrived safe and sound at level 40, but then he remembered Effie and froze. If there was anyone who was going to need his help to evacuate that was Effie. He imagined her in her room trying to fix her headscarf or picking up all her sparing clothes as if she were going on holidays, and then he rushed towards her quarters. The air-raid siren got painfully stuck in his head as he went to her door. Haymitch slid it open and he saw exactly what he expected: Effie was stuffing her last Capitol clothes on a gray military bag. Haymitch supposed that nobody had forced her to get rid of the dress she was wearing when they arrived at District Thirteen, so she had kept it.

"Effie, what the hell are you doing?", Haymitch asked approaching her in a hurry and grabbing her arm.

"I need to save my things because it's the only stuff I have left from my past self", she answered with conviction.

"Leave that if you want to save your damn present self!"

Haymitch snatched the bag from her and threw it on the bed, then grabbed Effie's hand and headed to the door disregarding her complaints. They went out into the corridor, still hand in hand, Haymitch leading the way, but he noticed that Effie's pace was too slow and turned his head to check on her, as she may be hurt or too scared to react. At first he wasn't able to find out what was happening, because Effie looked frightened, but collected, and it wasn't until they reached the emergency staircase that Haymitch realized that she was wearing her impossible heels. He stopped dead and stared at her in disbelief.

"Shit! I can't believe it! Get rid of those now!", he shouted.

"But, Haymitch, I can go downstairs in heels. There's no problem for..."

"Of course it's a problem! We have to reach level 40 in two minutes. Do you understand that we are under attack? You'd rather lose those heels than your life, wouldn't you? Took them off!", he ordered, but Effie crossed her arms in front of her chest and didn't move. "Alright, you asked for it, sweetheart".

With a very fast movement, Haymitch crouched down a little and grabbed Effie's waist, then tossed her over his shoulder. The former escort started to scream at him, but Haymitch held her legs against his chest and removed her heels from her pantyhosed feet with his other hand. He threw them away while Effie tried to free herself from his grip and he rushed down the stairs with her on his shoulder. The steps were made in iron and might be uncomfortable to walk on with bare feet.

People hurried down the staircase around them as gray lightnings. Some hit Haymitch in their evacuation as well. When they were going past level 35, the first bomb landed somewhere up there and the whole District Thirteen shook. Most of the people screamed, Effie included. Haymitch held on to the handrail with one hand and squatted, his heart racing. A heavy rain started to pour over them through the ceiling cracks as the lights flickered. The victor stood up quickly and made his way towards level 40 without speaking: he was beginning to feel exhausted and didn't want to lose any more strength. Some seconds later, they arrived at the blast doors and Haymitch put Effie down finally, but he grabbed her elbow without delay and ran towards the bunker pulling her. The countdown still resounded in their ears, but they were momentarily safe though soaked to the skin.

"Effie, listen to me. Search for a corner and sit there", Haymitch instructed with his hands on her shoulders. "I'm going to check on Katniss and I'll be right back."

The woman nodded and watched him walk away from her. She was about to do what she had been told when another bomb was dropped down and hit the surface. Effie crouched down against a bunk bed crying out. She was hyperventilating when she managed to get on her feet again to look for a corner. She approached a wall trembling and followed it until she found the nearest intersection, where she sat down and covered her head. She heard the end of the countdown and the voice announced that the blast door had been sealed. Effie hoped for Katniss to be alright. Then another bunch of explosions shook the underground city and the woman started to rock. People tried to comfort their loved ones, sat everywhere or lay under their bunk beds.

Suddenly, Effie caught a glimpse of a soaked dark woolen jacket and she knew Haymitch was on its way. He reached her corner and crouched down beside her with his hands full of stuff.

"Katniss is alright. How are you doing, sweetheart?", he answered in his lightest tone leaving a pair of blankets on the ground, together with two lanterns and a gray bag. "These are our welcome packs. How kind of them."

When another bomb hit the land above, Haymitch leaned in and covered Effie with his own body. That first attack was followed by at least nine more. At some point, lights went off and Haymitch pulled away from Effie to switch on one of their lanterns, as so many others did. The victor took off his jacket because it was too wet and he was starting to get cold.

"Untie your headscarf and remove it", he told her. "Then wrap you up in this blanket."

"I'm not letting everyone see my hair! It's so out of fashion", Effie responded in her strongest Capitol accent.

"Nobody cares about that, really, sweetheart! Do you prefer to catch a cold? I don't think blowing your nose is very fashionable."

She sighed in annoyance and finally took off her headscarf and let her blonde hair down while Haymitch unfolded the blanket. When he raised his eyes he stopped dead at the sight of her. It was the first time in twelve years that he saw Effie's natural hair and he liked it, oh yes. The victor couldn't help but reach for a wet lock and comb it with his fingers.

"Haymitch...", she pleaded quite embarrassed. He noticed that her cheeks turned dark pink.

He apologized and held out the blanket for her to protect herself from cold. Haymitch sensed his heart racing inside his chest. How inconvenient. He took off his beanie as well, as it was soaked, and shook his head to dry his hair a little, then he ran a hand through it to hide his moment of weakness.

"Why don't we have a bunk bed, just like the others?", Effie asked to change the subject while wrapping herself up in the blanket.

The next blast made the ceiling crack a little more and silenced Haymitch's answer. New screams filled the air. When the echo stopped, the victor said: "We do, but I think it's safer to curl up against a corner than sitting on a bunk bed when a whole underground city is shaking."

Effie nodded as Haymitch sat right beside her, their shoulders touching. Speaking of shaking, the woman was trembling like a leaf left to the mercy of the wind. Haymitch noticed it when his arm brushed against hers. He didn't have time to react, because another explosion hit the ground and Effie threw herself into his lap panting heavily. She had wanted to do it from the beginning of the attack, but she wasn't sure that Haymitch wouldn't have shaken her off. The victor didn't hesitate to rub her upper arm over the blanket comfortingly. Effie looked so helpless with her head rested on his thighs... Haymitch felt sorry for her and a flash of guilt crossed his mind for having dragged her to Thirteen, but then he remembered Cinna and Portia's fates and the guilt disappeared. Better scared than dead, no doubt. Nobody knew how the night would end yet, but there were more chances for Effie to survive in Thirteen than in the Capitol.

They spent the rest of the air-raid in that position, Effie covering her head with her arms every time a bomb reached any spot of the district and Haymitch rubbing and rocking her. After half an hour of silence, everybody considered the bombing concluded. Nobody said it out loud, but everyone knew it tacitly. People started to move and talk more confidently, kind of relieved. Effie still didn't sit up and remained on Haymitch's lap for a while, his fingers daring to play with her hair, which wasn't wet yet, but still damp. Where did insensitive Haymitch go? How long had he been caring for that Capitol woman without even noticing? How had she knocked down the wall he had spent more than twenty years building around his heart? He could go on pretending he didn't have feelings for Effie, but he kind of knew that everyone was noticing the change in him. Some might be associating it with the lack of alcohol in his blood, which was also playing an important role in his new self, but there was something deeper. How was he supposed to deal with something like that, with feelings for a woman who he would never be able to be in a relationship with? He sighed and rubbed his eyes. Then Effie sat up and leaned against the wall. She glanced at him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"What a night, dear", she said trying to regain her haughty self.

Haymitch snorted and shook his head in amusement. What a woman. A second ago she was completely terrified, but at that moment she looked self-confident again. Effie frowned, but her expression softened again when Haymitch rested his hand on top of hers and patted it.

"Do you want to look for your bunk bed now?", the victor asked.

Effie considered his offer, but she declined it. "I don't think I will be able to walk right now. My legs are still trembling."

"I could help you."

But she turned down his proposition again. "No, it's alright. The only problem is that this place is too cold. I'm freezing."

"I think I've got the solution for that, but don't get mad at me, sweetheart."

Effie frowned for the second time in one minute. Haymitch picked up the blanket he had left on the ground beside them and wrapped himself up in it. He could have been happy with holding it out to Effie, which would have been the normal thing to do, but his idea went further than that and he refused to ask her because he didn't want to give her the chance to reject his help once again. Then the victor slipped an arm over her shoulders to grab them and dragged her until Effie was pressed right against his chest and stuck between his legs.

"Haymitch, what are you doing?", she hissed, her body completely tense.

"I'm going to keep you warm."

"People are watching us", Effie insisted.

"They don't care about us. Just relax and rest. You look exhausted and I noticed that some dark bags have already started to form under your eyes...", he teased.

"You're a horrible man."

But Effie leaned back against him and her muscles slackened bit by bit. Haymitch hugged the former escort so both blankets covered her, and she didn't protest. She reclined her head on his shoulder, her locks tickling his cheek, and kept silent for a while. They heard noises around them, as people were getting ready to spend the night inside the bunker as well as possible: some played with their lanterns, others searched for their beds... Everybody was still frightened, but district people were tough and always tried to look on the bright side of things to raise their spirits, no matter how harsh life was on them.

"Thank you."

Haymitch suddenly heard Effie's voice next to his ear. Her tone was quite sleepy, so he looked down at her face to check if her eyes were closed. They were actually, and he felt her breathing getting deeper and slowing down. The victor sighed and dared to press his lips against the side of her head. Then he muttered against her skin: "You're welcome, princess. But don't get used to it", and kissed her temple softly.

Effie, half-asleep as she already was, never knew if it was real or a dream, but she surrendered to sleep with a sweet smile on her face.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Thanks once again for reading this fic. It means a lot to me. I hope you're enjoying it!_


	14. Chapter 14: If only

_After their night inside the bunker, Katniss is asked for a propo, but she realizes that Snow means to kill Peeta and she can't shoot it. Coin decides to send a team to retrieve the imprisoned victors._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 14: If only**

Haymitch couldn't blame Katniss for leaving the propo shooting. The scene was macabre, with all those white roses lying everywhere. Both he and Effie had tried to comfort her, Haymitch with a fatherly hug -after he had felt Effie's hand on his back slightly pushing him towards Katniss- and the Capitol woman following her right away. They were very fond of Peeta as well, they still were part of a team, almost a family. When Haymitch managed to soothe Cressida, he left the rocks too and got inside to search for the girls. He found them halfway down the stairs, Katniss bent down over her own vomit and Effie rubbing her back. The former escort looked at him as he approached them, her lips pursed and her eyes blurred by the tears.

"He's gonna kill Peeta... He's gonna kill Peeta...", Katniss kept saying in a strangled voice.

"We won't let that happen", Effie assured her still stroking her shoulders.

Haymitch sighed. He put one hand on each girl's waist and rested his forehead against Katniss's crown for a moment while Effie leaned hers against his shoulder, then the man shot a glance towards Effie before going down the stairs straight to Command.

The victor stormed in the room and headed to where President Coin was standing. At the sight of his expression, Plutarch approached him to put a brake on his advance. The former Head Gamemaker grabbed his arm gently to warn him, but Haymitch freed himself and addressed Coin:

"We need to get Peeta out of the Capitol", he spat.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Abernathy, but now we aren't in the position to..."

"Katniss isn't going to shoot any more propos. She can't, she's devastated because Snow is playing with her feelings. It's enough what we're making her go through. You will lose your Mockingjay if you don't send a group to rescue the victors, Ma'am. And I'm not sure you could find another one in time to win this media battle."

Coin shot him a calculating stare. Then suddenly Boggs got in the room and spoke from behind Haymitch's back:

"We may send a little group, Ma'am, only formed by volunteers. It could work."

Haymitch nodded in gratitude towards the soldier. Plutarch took a step closer to enter their visual field and contributed:

"Capitol defenses are down now, as Beetee told us. If there's a chance to retrieve the prisoners, that must be this one."

President Coin looked at the three men alternately and said: "Alright. I will authorize the mission only if you lead the team, Boggs. It's a great responsibility and it's going to be dangerous."

"I'm ready, Ma'am. Everything will be arranged in no more than two hours", the soldier promised and left Command, followed by Haymitch, who missed a good drop of whiskey at that moment.

The victor went upstairs again to see if Katniss and Effie were still there, but there was no trace of them. He even went back to the rocks, but Cressida and her team were also missing, so Haymitch headed to Katniss's room to inform her that there was a rescue mission on its way. He hoped that the information would cheer her up a little. Katniss was nowhere to be seen, so after an hour and a half looking for her everywhere he thought she could have hidden, the man gave up the search. Then he headed to the canteen to make himself a tea, if possible, and there he found Effie, sipping from a cup.

"Did they leave yet?", she asked when she spotted him.

"No. They're getting ready", Haymitch answered while heating up some water in a tea machine. "I heard the Hawthorne boy volunteered. He will make a great soldier, I guess."

"Absolutely. But he's doing this for Katniss. He is deeply in love with her", Effie sighed.

"I know, sweetheart. I'm not blind", he retorted and Effie rolled her eyes in disbelief. Haymitch went on, oblivious to it. "What I can't get is Katniss's attitude. She gets along very well with this boy, anyone would tell they're together, but she can't function without Peeta."

Effie waited for Haymitch to sit next to her with his own cup of tea to say: "She loves Peeta as well. Love is a complex thing."

"Come on, you can't love two people at the same time. What's the point? Having feelings for just one person drives you crazy enough...", he stated. Suddenly, the man realized he could have gone too far by using the present tense.

"There's no point. You can't choose who you fall in love with, Haymitch. You're so thick sometimes", she said losing her patience as Haymitch narrowed his eyes. "That's why Katniss is always so stressed. She loves both boys and she doesn't know what to do. She needs them both to be happy, but she's aware that she's hurting her two best friends. At some point she will have to choose, if this war doesn't do it for her...", Effie said and then she fell silent.

Haymitch didn't say anything else for a while. He knew that Katniss was fighting her own war inside her heart. She wasn't very good at speaking about feelings, and Haymitch understood her perfectly, because they were very alike. If he had had a daughter, she would have probably been like Katniss, he thought. And he didn't know where that idea had come from, but it hurt. The victor dropped his head and ran a hand through his hair. Suddenly, Effie's hand reached for the fingers he was still clutching his cup with. Haymitch didn't resist and let her hold his hand. He rubbed her knuckles with his thumb softly, without looking away from them. Effie eventually leaned against him and rested her head on his shoulder. They remained in that position for a few minutes, still rubbing each other's hands, until Effie raised her head a little to stare at him, her chin on his shoulder. Haymitch held her gaze with his face mere inches away from hers, and then darted a look at her lips unconsciously. He had the impression that Effie leaned in slightly and, though he wasn't sure, the victor dared to approach his face a little more.

And suddenly they heard someone's steps and they pulled away. Effie took a sip from her tea to calm down.

"Ah, there you are", Plutarch's voice came to them. "The team is ready to depart. I thought you might want to say goodbye."

Both Effie and Haymitch nodded, their hearts still racing and their minds far far away from District Thirteen. They stood up and followed Plutarch to the hangar. Haymitch was too aware of Effie's presence by his side. Heavensbee kept talking about the mission details all their way up there, but neither the victor nor the former escort payed any attention to him. The three arrived at the hangar when President Coin was giving the last instructions to the group of six brave soldiers who volunteered to rescue the victors. The soldiers loved ones were there as well to cheer them on. Haymitch spotted Primrose Everdeen next to Gale and he saw the chance to ask her for Katniss's whereabouts. The girl explained that her sister didn't want to be found for the time being, as she needed to be alone, but Haymitch assured her that he only meant to inform her about the mission, so Primrose ended up revealing Katniss's hideout: the Mockingjay had hidden herself inside a narrow passage used to conceal the pipes.

Haymitch waited for the team to depart to leave the hangar in search for Katniss. He wasn't sure if he had to say something to Effie. Those things were too difficult for him, so the victor headed to the elevator, but he heard some footsteps behind his back and turned his head to see Effie trying to chase him.

"Did you find out where Katniss is?", she asked while stepping in the elevator after Haymitch.

"Yes, I'm gonna give her some hope."

"Will you be at Command later?"

Haymitch operated the machine and faced her. "Yes, sweetheart, but I don't want you there. Coin can't be happy with me today because I wasn't very polite to her earlier. I don't think she's in the mood for having you at Command. Besides, I prefer that you not witness the rescue. If everything goes well, I'll let you know, but if it doesn't...", Haymitch didn't want to say the words 'Peeta' and 'dead' in the same sentence, so he used the euphemism.

Effie took a deep breath and held his gaze. Then she put a hand on his forearm and squeezed.

"Alright. I'll see if there's anything I can do while I wait for the news."

There was another awkward moment between the two as the elevator reached the level they were going to. The silence was so thick that it could be cut off. Effie's hand remained on Haymitch's arm during the ride. Suddenly, he closed the space between them just a few seconds before the elevator door opened. He was decided to kiss her lips without any complex, but he changed his mind in the very last moment and ended up pecking Effie on the forehead. Then the elevator stopped and he stepped back to open the door. They were greeted by the district daily noise and their bubble broke. Haymitch cast a last glance at Effie, whose expression seemed kind of longing, and left to search for Katniss.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Thanks for reading. ;)_


	15. Chapter 15: More than one rescue

_Everyone in District Thirteen is waiting for the rescue team's arrival. When the victors are finally safe in there, Peeta tries to kill Katniss and it's clear that his memories of Katniss have been altered to make him a deadly weapon._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 15: More than one rescue**

"Did I lose them both tonight? Did I lose them both tonight?", Katniss kept saying while hugging Haymitch. The man tried to calm her down making shushing noises and stroking her hair. He suddenly felt like a father, an already known feeling when it came to Katniss, as it wasn't the first time. The girl went on weeping on his shoulder for a while, mussing incoherent things from time to time. Everybody at Command looked at them with pity, even President Coin. Then Katniss pulled away and stared at Haymitch's face barely focusing. He patted her cheek affectionately and let her leave Command. He understood she may need to be alone.

"I will try to reestablish a connection with them, but I'm sure by now that the Capitol will have inhibited their signal", Beetee said.

Haymitch addressed Coin. "If you don't need me, Ma'am, I will leave now as well."

The President nodded at him and the victor went out. He headed to Effie's quarters to inform her of what had happened, but she wasn't there. Haymitch frowned and he was about to leave when he heard some quick footsteps behind his back. He turned his head and saw Effie almost running towards him.

"Haymitch! What happened?", she asked grabbing his arm. "Everything went black suddenly and everyone is speculating".

"Wait, what are you talking about?", he asked back. "Where did you see it? I told you not to watch the mission!"

"I couldn't wait. There are some pleasant soldiers in level 24 who let me have a look at the screen", she explained. Haymitch's stomach twisted a little. "We saw the team burst into the Training Center in the darkness, and then the lights were switched on and the screen stopped showing images."

"So you didn't hear the conversation between Katniss and Snow..."

"What?"

Haymitch pushed her inside gently and slid the door closed. They sat on her bed next to each other and the victor told her everything he had witnessed at Command. Effie gaped, swallowed and put her hand on her chest to prevent her heart from breaking her ribs -Haymitch supposed- while he talked. When he finished, Effie fell silent and covered her mouth with her hand to muffle a sigh.

"Poor Katniss", Effie muttered behind her fingers. "She must be dejected."

"She is. And the worst part is that she might have lost both Gale and Peeta tonight indeed."

"Don't say that, Haymitch! Don't even mention that possibility", the woman looked at him intently and clutched his jacket. "We aren't going to lose Peeta."

"Alright, sweetheart. Alright", he conceded.

Then Effie locked arms with him and rested her head on his shoulder. Haymitch had no longer the strength to resist, so he leaned to his side as well to rest his cheek on Effie's headscarf knot and remained in that position for a while, listening to her breathing and heartbeats, his personal lullaby. The victor felt the warmth of her hand on his forearm and intertwined his fingers with hers. They could only wait for news, nothing else could be done, and as strange as it may seem, that gave them some peace. Effie's anxiety fluctuated from time to time, but she found comfort in Haymitch's touch. When her nervousness decreased, her eyelids grew heavier and she even closed her eyes once or twice. Haymitch noted it and, as they hadn't moved for more than half and hour and his back was starting to ache, he told her to go to bed.

"How am I supposed to sleep?", she asked rubbing her eyes, trying to wipe away her exhaustion.

"You're tired, Effie. Lie down at least. I'm gonna check on the news. I'll be back in a while."

"I should go and comfort Katniss", the woman said suppressing a yawn with her hand.

"She didn't need us now, actually. There's nothing we can do for her. You know Katniss: she's a lone wolf and she suffers on her own. She may find some relief in Finnick's company tonight, but I don't even count on it."

"She's like you", Effie commented casually while fluffing her pillow.

Haymitch didn't know whether his mind took that statement as a challenge or not, but he suddenly leaned in, cupped Effie's nape with his hand and kissed her lips softly, as if afraid of breaking them. It lasted just a couple of seconds, but they tasted like silver. Haymitch pulled away and stared at Effie, whose eyes were wide open in surprise. She didn't expect that, for sure. The victor caressed her cheek with his fingertips, a half-smile on his lips, and, without giving her the chance to react, he left her room.

He couldn't believe what he had just done. His lips had acted their own way. It had been as if Effie's ones were a magnet for his. Haymitch had finally surrendered to his necessity of her. Perhaps he shouldn't have opened that door, because what he only wanted at the moment was kissing her again, softly, roughly, gently, hungrily. But what if she didn't reciprocate his desires? He didn't even dare to think about feelings...

The victor stopped in the semidarkness of the corridor and leaned against the closest wall, then rubbed his temples and focused on the situation. He had other priorities in mind -Katniss, for instance-, and he would have plenty of time to worry about Effie's reaction to the kiss later. Haymitch resumed his way to Command, back in his sarcastic mood and rude attitude.

As for Effie, she felt a shiver running down her spine. Suddenly, she wasn't sleepy anymore. What was that? She knew that what she had felt when Haymitch had pressed his lips against hers shouldn't be right. They couldn't fancy each other, could they? They were Twelve's mentor and escort, and that kind of relationship was too dangerous. But they were no longer mentor and escort, actually. So, were they allowed to believe in an approach between them? But they were right in the middle of a war! What if he died? She couldn't get attached: it would be too hard for her to move on if she lost him. And what would happen when everything finished? Would she...

Effie shook her head and covered her eyes with her hands in order to stop thinking. And, without being able to avoid it, a small smile reached her lips slowly.

She must have fallen asleep at some point, because the next thing she was aware of was that people were making noises outside her quarters. Running footsteps, worried conversations... Something had woken her up in the middle of the night and Effie didn't know what time it was. Haymitch were nowhere to be seen, but she knew he had come back to her room at some point because the bed next to hers was unmade and she was wrapped in her blanket, and she didn't remember having covered herself with it. The former escort got up and fixed her headscarf and uniform before poking her head round the door.

"Excuse me, lady, could you tell me what's happening?", she asked politely to a woman in gray who rushed past her room.

"The rescue team came back about twenty minutes ago. They took the victors to the hospital."

Effie didn't have the chance to ask again, as the woman left at full speed. The escort slid her door closed and followed her. Effie's heart pounded nervously inside her chest. Would have they rescued Peeta on time? She arrived at the crowded hospital wing where the victors were being taken care of and spotted Peeta's photograph on a screen -he looked awful-, then she headed to his room. She heard some noises behind the door, and when she was about to get in, there was a loud bang. Effie opened the door to find both Peeta and Katniss passed out on the floor, Boggs holding a shovel and Haymitch bent over Katniss, his hand on her neck as if checking her pulse.

"Effie, get out of here", Haymitch told her.

"What...", she tried to articulate, but just in vain.

She stepped forward to kneel beside Katniss and Peeta, her hands shaking, but then Haymitch said "Fuck" aloud, stood up, grabbed her upper arms and took her out of the room. At that very moment, Plutarch and Coin reached the place and Haymitch shot them a worried look, but he didn't stop to talk to them. The victor led Effie to an empty room. She was breathing too fast and couldn't understand why Haymitch was taking her away from the children. When they got in, he closed the door and made her sit down on the bed.

"What happened, Haymitch?"

He took off his beanie and ran his hands through his hair, then flinched a little as if he were in pain. He started pacing the room to calm down and said:

"I don't know. They did something to Peeta. He has tried to kill Katniss."

"That's impossible!", Effie shouted.

"I know what I've seen. He was about to strangle her when Boggs hit him with a shovel."

"Did he got hurt?! Was it necessary, really? I think there's already enough suffering on his résumé without anyone else hitting him! Perhaps he didn't know what he was doing!", she complained getting on her feet.

"Perhaps we should have let him kill Katniss! I tried to get him off her without violence, but he's stronger than me, sweetheart", Haymitch answered showing his left palm to Effie before taking a seat on a chair opposite her. A large cut ran across the front of his hand. She gaped and stepped closer to him, then took his hand in hers to check the seriousness of the wound. Haymitch felt her skin on his and it sent some electricity through his veins.

"Does it hurt?", she asked. "Let me take care of it."

Effie approached a cabinet and looked for some medicines inside it.

"It does, but I don't mind. Don't bother to fix it, Effie. It's a reminder of what I didn't do to save Peeta from the Capitol", Haymitch explained quite downcast. He threw his beanie on the bed.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. Is it going to help Peeta heal that you lose your hand due to an infection? I won't stitch it up, I wouldn't know how to and I might faint even before unpacking the needle. But I can clean it."

Effie picked gauze and a bottle of antiseptic and closed the cabinet.

"Not Capitol medicine, but I guess this will do its job. Wash your hand there", she ordered pointing to a sink.

"You've missed this, haven't you, princess?", Haymitch asked offering a teasing smile while pouring some water on his palm. "Being bossy, I mean."

"Don't push your luck, dear. I'm holding gauze", Effie joked, but without putting her whole heart in it. She was too worried for the children to allow any happiness. "Sit down."

Haymitch did what she told him and stared at her focused face. "I like this side of you, you know: the confident Effie Trinket", he paused to tickle her side, so she spilled some antiseptic on the floor and clicked her tongue in disapproval, but Haymitch could see the little smile fighting to show at her lips. "You are like a fish out of water here. I'm sorry."

"I'm safe here. And I'm with the kids. I suppose that's what really matters", she said shrugging, a very not Effie-like gesture. Then she poured some disinfectant on the gauze and rubbed his wounded hand with it very gently.

Haymitch run his eyes all over her face as if he tried to learn her already well-known features by heart. The former escort could feel his stare fixed on her and, though her heart was racing, her hands didn't shake. At some point, Haymitch took the bottle from her and placed it on the floor, then threw an arm around her waist and forced her to sit down on his thighs. Effie stopped rubbing his palm and locked eyes with him. There was a moment when the world seemed to come to a halt, when some hesitance crossed the air between them. After that few seconds of doubt, it was as if everything started to happen in slow-motion. Effie put an arm around his shoulders and leaned in to press her lips against his tentatively. Haymitch met her halfway to prevent her from thinking it twice. He needed so desperately to kiss her again... If anyone had told him a year ago that he would make out with Effie Trinket someday, he would have snorted loudly in their face. But there they were deepening the kiss bit by bit, tasting each other's tongues, their hands wandering all over each other's bodies... They were completely lost in their intimacy when Effie pulled away for air, her whole body throbbing as much as Haymitch's. His hands clutched her waist -the wound in his palm long forgotten- while hers ran through his hair. Then Effie licked her bottom lip panting heavily and said with some difficulties:

"You've got... a lump... over here... as well", her fingers rubbed a point near his nape and he flinched in pain. She didn't stop stroking his neck and nape, so Haymitch allowed himself to relax a little under her touch and leaned in to rest his forehead on her shoulder. It had been a very, very long and hard day and his body was asking for a piece of peace -among other things he didn't want to think about with Effie still on his lap-. After a few seconds, he heard the former escort mutter in his ear: "We will regret this."

Haymitch doubted it, but didn't say anything. He barely recognized himself in that man who suddenly cared for three people as if they were family. Every loving feeling he had suppressed years ago was back in his heart. They were quite rusty due to the lack of use, but Effie, Katniss and Peeta had succeeded in bringing them back to him, along with the dread of losing them, of course. But those were the consequences of being alive, he supposed, and he refused to retreat in his shell so easily, so soon. He could barely keep his irritating mask on when he looked at overwhelmed Katniss, tortured Peeta or helpless Effie.

He took a deep breath and then sighed.

"Are you alright, Haymitch?", Effie asked forcing him to look at her.

"Yes, but I need some rest."

He hadn't finished the sentence when his beeper vibrated with brand new instructions: Katniss's closest friends would take turns to keep an eye on her evolution during the rest of the night and the next day. Effie rubbed Haymitch's back soothingly and they stood up to tidy up the room before heading to the door. There were so may things still to be said... Or things they may never dare to say... When they reached the door, Haymitch lifted Effie's chin with his fingers and gave her a little kiss before going out. They both left the room as if nothing had happened between them: it was better to keep the change in their relationship to them for the moment, until they had everything a little clearer, and because it wasn't the best of times for it.

Haymitch and Effie showed up together at Katniss's room, where two doctors were putting a cervical collar around the unconscious girl's swollen neck. Prim and Katniss's mother, Gale, Boggs and Plutarch were already there. They intended to prevent Effie from taking turns, but she insisted on looking after her as well, so she was given the first hour and Haymitch took the second one. When everyone knew the timetable, they left the room one by one with worried faces, especially Prim. The doctors took their time inserting an IV line in Katniss's arm and then left as well. Effie approached her bed to sit down beside her and took the girl's hand in hers. After a while, when she considered that she had provided enough comfort to Katniss, she went to sit in the chair at the foot of the bed and discovered Haymitch leaning against the glass door. Somehow Effie knew that he wasn't going to leave her alone, not that night.

"I went to check on Peeta", he explained in a very low voice as he went to sit right beside Effie in another chair. "He's still passed out as well."

"I want to see him later", she pleaded and Haymitch nodded. Effie's hand searched for his and they intertwined their fingers as if they had ever done it that way.

They had two very long hours ahead -because Effie wasn't going to leave Haymitch alone either- and lots of things to think on.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Sorry for the delay. It's been a crazy week and this one was longer than the others. I hope you enjoyed it. Read and review, please. Your comments always help me._


	16. Chapter 16: Fear is in the air

_We are already at the end of Mockingjay – Part 1. Watching the film again, I noticed something curious in Effie's behavior and I decided to use it here. :)_

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 16: Fear is in the air**

Their two-hour watch in Katniss's room left Haymitch and Effie exhausted. They had barely talked because they were too tired for it. Effie had slept around an hour with her head on Haymitch's shoulder, but he had only allowed himself to take a small nap towards the end of the first hour. His muscles and bones ached after remaining in the same position for nearly two hours. Katniss's vital signs were steady, but she didn't wake up, so the pair in charge of her didn't have much to do. Effie got up from time to time while she was awake to tuck in the girl or to rub her forehead, but that was all.

When Prim arrived to take over, Effie caressed the girl's chin and both escort and victor left the room to visit Peeta. They weren't allowed to enter the room, so they had to see the boy from behind a glass. Effie covered her mouth with her hand at the sight of gaunt Peeta to keep her tears at bay. After a few minutes, Haymitch took her by the arm and guided her out.

They headed to Effie's quarters in silence. The corridors were quiet as it was wee hours. The woman was too affected, but Haymitch didn't dare to show any signs of comfort until they arrived at their destination. Once the door was shut close, he rubbed her back while Effie leaned her forehead against one of her room walls.

"Poor Peeta", she lamented in a whisper. "But he's tough. He will heal..."

Haymitch didn't say anything. He was too tired to speak. Besides, he didn't know what the Capitol had done to Peeta and he wasn't the type to lie when he wasn't sure about something that important, even if that meant comforting Effie. The escort turned around with a sigh and patted his chest.

"I need to tidy myself up before going to bed. I'll be back in a minute. Make yourself at home", Effie told him.

She grabbed her toiletry bag and disappeared through the door and into the corridor. The rooms didn't come with bathrooms or toilets, so the inhabitants had to go to the shared ones at the end of each level. Effie hated that, but she had no choice if she wanted to be decent and clean. She must have remained at the bathroom for only ten minutes, as she decided to postpone her shower until the next morning, but when she returned to her quarters, Haymitch was already asleep, sprawled face down on the bed. Effie shook her head half-amused, half-worried and she tried not to make any noise, though she suspected that not even an air-raid would have been able to wake Haymitch up given his exhaustion. However, she couldn't help but brushing her lips against his temple before sliding into her own bed.

 _-oooooo-_

A persistent vibration woke Haymitch up very early in the morning. He hadn't slept enough time, but the notice could only mean that Katniss was already awake. He wiped the dream out of his eyes by rubbing them and got up with some difficulties. It was as if the past night had aged him. The victor looked at Effie, who was sleeping peacefully, and he decided not to wake her up yet before getting out of her quarters.

The morning was as crazy as the day before had been. They were given some explanations about what had happened to Peeta back in the Capitol -which made Haymitch smash his cup of tea against a wall- and then they headed to Katniss's room, where Prim was already keeping her sister company. Haymitch couldn't help but admiring the little girl's strength, it had to be a family thing.

The victor wasn't able to see Effie until lunch, and even then they were surrounded by some other members of the team. She was quieter than usual and didn't eat much. Plutarch tried to help by handing her the cards he had written for Coin's evening speech in an attempt to make her revise them, but Effie wasn't interested, so she turned down his offer. After lunch, Haymitch took her to visit Katniss, and the former escort made a great effort to sound as bubbly and cheerful as always, but even the girl -who tended to be oblivious to people's feelings- realized that Effie was sad, or concerned.

Effie had barely touched Haymitch that day and, though it wasn't still worrying him, he couldn't deny that he was already brooding on it. He didn't know that Effie was quite afraid of the way their relationship was going. She needed some space to think, but was longing for one of Haymitch's caresses at the same time. Poor Effie was too confused to let her inner desires flow. It was too soon. She didn't know if she could trust Haymitch to that extent. They had spent their whole life bickering and being at each other's throats, after all. And, despite all that, Effie liked him and she knew that he liked her in return. How had she ended up in that position?

It wasn't until Coin's speech that Effie needed Haymitch's reassurance. She stood on her spot at the front of one of the balconies listening to the President's harangue. Plutarch stood beside her very satisfied, his lips visibly mouthing the whole speech. Effie could sense Haymitch's presence in the shadows behind Plutarch. With each new word Coin said, Effie's uneasiness kept growing: she was a Capitol citizen and she had heard too many speeches all along her life to notice the similarities in Snow's and Coin's manners. She wasn't able to smile or clap. At some point, the woman felt some fingers searching for hers and she turned her head to look at Haymitch, who was staring at her knowingly. They intertwined their fingers just for a few seconds before the end of the speech, but that was all Effie needed to know that Haymitch was entirely on her side no matter what.

 _-oooooo-_

 _Did you realize that Effie wasn't comfortable at Coin's speech at the end of Mockingjay – Part 1? Her face is a poem, she doesn't know how to act. And then, she looks back. She doesn't look at Plutarch, who is by her side, but right behind him, where someone is standing in the shadows. At some point, this someone seems to put their beanie back in place. It could be Haymitch... To me, it is indeed. I wanted to include that scene in this collection._

 _Please, let me know what you think. Thanks for your reviews! ;)_


	17. Chapter 17: Off-guard

_Before being sent to District Two in order to protect Katniss, Haymitch looks for Effie to tell her the news and he finds her in... a curious place._

 _-oooooo-_

 **Chapter 17: Off-guard**

When he left Command that evening, Haymitch decided to take a shower. He didn't remember the last time he had allowed water to purify him properly and he felt like it at the moment. He had been told that he will be traveling to District Two with Katniss the next afternoon. In his humble opinion, the girl wasn't ready to be exposed again, but Coin had told him that Katniss herself had asked for it and Haymitch supposed she didn't want to be near Peeta, which was a quite coward but understandable movement.

The man headed to the room where they had to sign up to ask for the standard ten-minute shower. One of the most curious things about District Thirteen was the shower regulation. Everyone had the right to shower for ten minutes with hot water once a day. After that time, water turned cold and then went off, so the time was up. There were some exceptions to that rule: for instance, kids and soldiers who had been training hard were allowed to shower twice a day, ill people and women with their period were free to wash themselves anytime they needed it. There were little other special circumstances, and everyone complied. Besides, they had established some specific moments for people to shower: three hours in the morning -from six am to nine am- and four hours in the evening -from seven pm to ten pm- and that was all. Every citizen was given a plastic coin -how proper- at the time of their signing up, which had to be introduced in a slot placed in the very shower head. Effie was always complaining about the time. Though she had no conditioner or scented shower gel but only a piece of soap for her body and hair, she defended that she didn't have enough time to clean herself up.

Haymitch smiled with fondness when he thought about her. He wasn't sure where their relationship was. One minute Effie was searching for his contact and the next she was running away from it. Other times it was him who cut her off without ceremony, but those moments were less usual lately. He guessed they were kind of trying to protect themselves from each other, as neither of them were used to let their masks slip. But he would rather had Effie playing cat and mouse with him, instead of being far from her. They didn't have a lot of time to see each other, however, due to their corresponding tasks. Deep in thought as he was, he suddenly saw her name in the list he was about to sign: she had asked for a shower at twenty to ten pm. He knew Effie liked the last hours of the day to shower, because few people chose them: almost everyone preferred to clean themselves up in the morning, so their level bathroom was usually empty in the evenings. Haymitch was sure that Effie would have taken a shower three or four times a day if allowed, as he had seen her do during the Games, but the circumstances forced to choose.

The list was plenty of gaps from nine pm to ten pm, as there were more than twenty shower stalls per level, but Haymitch signed up in the blank right below Effie's name with a grin.

The victor entered the bathroom at quarter to ten to make sure that Effie would be already inside the shower stall. He could hear the sound of running water. Haymitch checked that the clothes which hung from a hook were Effie's -though they were standard grey, there was no possible mistake- and he undressed in a second. He knew the former escort would get mad at him when he slid inside her cubicle, but it was worth the attempt. Without thinking twice, Haymitch slowly drew the curtain which served as a door and got inside the shower stall as silent as he could. Once inside, he stared at Effie's body from behind without being noticed -though the cubicle was very small, the woman had her eyes closed and couldn't either hear him due to the noise- and he really liked what he saw: her skin was pale and her figure was well-proportioned. Her endless back ended in a firm butt and a pair of long toned legs. Haymitch felt the urge to touch her, to check if her skin was as soft as he imagined it. He closed the distance between them and gently wrapped his arms around Effie's nude body from behind. The woman gaped audibly and started to fight to free herself while water ran down their bodies.

"Sshhh, sweetheart. It's just me", Haymitch said in her ear with his most suggestive voice.

"Haymitch! What the hell are you doing?"

"Language", he told her with a smirk. "I'm here to extend your shower time."

"No way", Effie refused still trying to make him let go of her. "Get out of my stall. I'm naked!"

"I know."

"This is so improper, Haymitch!", she went on complaining. "I don't want you to see me this way."

"Might I convince you on the contrary?"

"What? No! Don't even dare to grope me!"

But Haymitch didn't lose time. After sliding his plastic coin in the slot, he started nuzzling the side of her neck, drawing silly patterns in her skin with his nose. Effie took a deep breath as her heart screamed with pleasure.

"Stop it, Haymitch, please...", the woman pleaded, but he didn't oblige.

The victor kissed his way to her ear and caressed her earlobe with his teeth. He hadn't dared to move his hands yet, but at that moment he began to make them wander all over her belly. Effie's panting was a little distracting and encouraging at the same time.

"I like you a lot, Effie. I like the real you", Haymitch said in between kisses.

"We shouldn't be... doing this. I don't think... mixed showers are allowed... in Thirteen..."

Effie's breathing became unsteady as Haymitch went on stroking her waist and hips with his hands. She ended up raising hers to run her fingers through his wet hair. Haymitch's body had also started to react to Effie's contact and he wasn't able to hide his growing happiness down there anymore, but the woman pressed herself against his front, her shyness long forgotten. Then she turned around in his arms and framed his face with her hands. The woman's bright blue oceans met his grey skies and she stared at him intently. After a few seconds, she brushed her lips against his tentatively. Haymitch kissed her back and they deepened the kiss at once. Effie parted her lips to allow his tongue to explore. The man run her hands all over her back, even grabbed her butt once or twice. There was no room for breathing. Their bodies were so close to each other that it would have been impossible to find the slightest gap.

It was clear they were ready to move to the next base, but they were so lost into each other that they didn't bother to keep an eye on the time, so when the cold water started to pour over their heads, both Effie and Haymitch cringed and groaned -but not in pleasure-. The shower head spat the last drops of cold water and stopped. Effie started to laugh, quite embarrassed again. She hid her face in the victor's shoulder to muffle her giggling and he tightened his grip on her to keep her a little warmer.

"I think it's time to get out of here", he said while rubbing her back, a little disappointed.

"Yes. It's ten already and the shower lights will be switched off in five minutes..."

Both Effie and Haymitch got out of the shower stall hand in hand and they felt the chill in their bodies. Suddenly, Effie was too aware of her nudity and hurried to take the grey towel Haymitch was handing to her to wrap herself up in it. She tried not to look at his companion's lower body, as it was clear that the victor felt quite uneasy due to his arousal now the heat had faded away.

They remained silent as they dried themselves and put on their clean clothes. Tension was in the air. When he finished his process, Haymitch leaned against the wall, his hands in his pockets, and stared at Effie as she used the hairdryer.

"You shouldn't put on that beanie without drying your hair first, Haymitch", she told the victor looking at his reflection in the mirror. Though he had barely heard her, the man arched an eyebrow in mockery. "Come here", she insisted while taking a stool from under the sink.

He obeyed, a smirk spreading across his features, and sat down, his back to Effie. The woman turned on the hairdryer again and pointed it at his hair. The hot air shook Haymitch's locks and sent a shiver down his spine. He closed his eyes and surrendered to the refuge the deafening noise provided him. Suddenly he felt protected, with Effie's fingers running through his hair. He was so tired... When he felt Effie's arm around his chest and her chin on his shoulder, he opened his eyes again and looked at her through the mirror. Then the woman kissed his cheek softly from behind and Haymitch stroked her arm. It felt so domestic that it even hurt. They stayed that way for a minute or two, staring at each other's reflections, enjoying some peace at the end of the day, the hairdryer still on. Why Haymitch didn't suggest to move it to one of their quarters, he never knew, but he realized the chance had passed when Effie smiled at him and stood up straight again.

When she turned off the device, Haymitch finally informed her about what he had intended to tell her from the beginning: "They're sending Katniss to District Two tomorrow to persuade them to take our side."

As fast as a lightning, Effie turned around to face him. "But she's still convalescent! Her throat didn't fully heal. Besides, I heard District Two is too dangerous these-"

"And I'm going with her."

"What? Why? You can't protect her, Haymitch! Look at your hands: you can't even hold a gun with those tremors", Effie approached him and held his hands in hers, a expression of pure fear on her face.

"I know. I will be there only to watch over her interests and safety. Don't worry, they won't allow me in the battlefield, sweetheart. Boggs and his men are far better than me for that task", the victor tried to calm her down. Then he said in a lighter tone: "I was sure you knew I volunteered to go with her just to see if there's any booze left in Two..."

"Haymitch! How can you-"

"I'm just joking, sweetheart. You're so easily fooled..."

Effie looked daggers at him for a few seconds and then said: "I want neither of you there. What if anything happens to you... two?"

Haymitch sighed. "Then you'll have to take care of Peeta for us. We're a team, remember?"

It was clear that the woman was making a great effort not to cry. Effie would always have a little escort inside her chest. She closed the distance between Haymitch and herself without hurrying and threw her arms around his waist.

"Promise me you will be careful."

"I will", he swore rubbing her back soothingly. "And don't worry about Katniss either. You know her Mockingjay suit is bulletproof. Cinna left nothing to chance."

Effie nodded against his shoulder and pulled away a little to lock eyes with him.

"Would you sleep with me tonight?"

"Do you mean...?", Haymitch smirked.

"Haymitch! You're impossible."

"I was kidding again, princess. Come on, let's see if your bed is hotter than this freezer."

Then they picked up their stuff and headed towards the escort's room, Haymitch's arm around Effie's shoulders and hers around his waist, as if they didn't care about what people would say. Effie may mind in the morning, but at that moment she found the weight of Haymitch's arm too comfortable to shake it off. They arrived at Effie's quarters with lighter hearts.

Little they knew about what would happen in District Two the next day.

 _-oooooo-_

 _There you are. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Be kind and leave a review: they help. :)_


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